More Precious than Gold
by Arekkusu-89
Summary: Eiri receives various threats demanding him to quit his career as a writer. At first the threats are minor, but eventually escalate into worse things. How will he deal with it since it's also seriously affecting his relationship with Shuichi?
1. It was like some horrible joke

**Title: More Precious Than Gold**  
**Author:** Arekkusu-89  
**Genre:** Drama/Suspense  
**Rating:** M  
**Explanation for Rating:** This is a yaoi fic, so what were you expecting? (sex, strong language. You know - the works), in other words, this fic is NOT suitable for anyone under 17. You have been warned.  
**Status:** Complete  
**Summary:** Eiri receives various threats demanding him to quit his career as a writer. At first the threats are minor – like bothersome anonymous calls and emails – but eventually escalate into worse things. How will he deal with it since it's also seriously affecting his relationship with Shuichi? Will he find the culprit before the incidents finally escalate into something horrible?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Gravitation (but you probably already guessed that). Also - as you should already know - Gravitation belongs to Maki Murakami (and if you don't know that, than shame on you! jk). I am only borrowing her beautiful characters, and I do not make any money off these writings (which is too bad for me).

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**EPISODE 1: It Was Like Some Horrible Joke...**

"NO, YOU DAMN BRAT! As much as I'd _love_ to get in bed with you right now, I fucking can't!"

"But, Yuki," Shuichi whined while clinging tightly onto Eiri's legs. He looked up at his blond lover with big, violet - almost girly - eyes, which were bubbling over with a fountain of shiny, crystal-clear tears. "You promised!"

Eiri closed his eyes and mentally counted slowly to ten. When he was finished he let out a long, irritated sigh - apparently the counting didn't work quite as well as he'd hoped; he was still feeling _very_ irate - and for good reasons. First off, his deadline was fast approaching an end, and he still had several lengthy chapters to complete. Second, he had writers block, which was a serious hamper to any writer - especially one with an imminent deadline looming around the corner. One more distraction was _not_ appreciated at the moment.

If it weren't for the fact that several people with _power_ (namely a red haired guitarist and a certain blond American) would be very upset if the little pink-haired baka somehow turned up dead, he'd have exterminated the little brat a long time ago.

"Shu-i-chi," He hissed through clenched teeth, carefully pronouncing each syllable as if they were individual words. "If I _don't_ meet this _deadline_, there won't be anything _left_ of me to get in _bed_ with you once my _editor_ gets _through_ with me. Got it? So leave, Shuichi. Leave. Right. _Now_."

Word by word, the meaning of Eiri's command slowly sunk its way into the vocalist's brain. Finally, Shuichi understood the message, and slumped his shoulders in defeat. He loosened his impossibly tight grip on Eiri's legs, and bowed his head submissively. He knew the novelist enough to realize that when he got like this, there was absolutely no changing his mind. It was like trying to slam a revolving door; utterly impossible.

Shuichi bit his lip to keep it from trembling. "Okay Yuki - I understand. Gomen." He completely released his hold on the writer. With a soft and dejected voice he added, "I'll leave you alone now. I guess I'll just go to work."

Eiri sighed and looked over at his desk clock. He had to squint against the red digit's impossibly bright glare to see the numbers properly. "Shuichi, its five in the morning - just go back to sleep."

"Huh?" Shu asked, but the other man was already deeply engrossed with his typing and didn't hear him. Sighing, he left the room and softly closed the door behind him. Crestfallen, he slumped to the ground and leaned back against the door to Eiri's office. It was then that he noticed the unusually dark and quiet atmosphere of the apartment. Curious, he glanced down at his waterproof-up-to-100-meters ANR-E brand wrist watch which had been a birthday gift from Hiro last year. _Oh_, he thought, _it's only five am. I guess I'll just go back to sleep._

**o---OoO---o**

Once Shuichi _finally_ left the room, Eiri immediately stopped his fake typing ruse (who's sole purpose was to make him seem exceptionally busy) and reopened his email program.

Before being so rudely interrupted by the hyperactive, strawberry-haired baka, he had received a strange email, and was about to open it when Shu burst into the room, begging Eiri to go to bed with him. What in all hell possessed the little brat to get out of bed this early anyway? Surely his unquenchable lust for the sexy blond novelist wasn't _that_ strong...or was it? Eiri chuckled softly, amused by his own thoughts.

Normally, the tall, golden-eyed novelist would've jumped at the chance - any chance for that matter - to spend some quality, _pleasure_-filled time with his boy-toy, but something about the e-mail's appearance bothered him to the point where his curiosity overruled all other impulses (which was really saying something).

First of all, he didn't recognize the address. _Normally_ that wouldn't be any cause for concern; he'd just assume it was from some idiot fan gushing words of love and worship over his him and his books - which 99.9 of the time was the case - and delete it, but this email was addressed to his private account - an account that only a select group of people knew about. Lastly - and more importantly - the subject line read "to uesugi".

This stranger knew not only his private email address, but his family name as well. How?

Eiri hesitated for only a moment before clicking it open. The message itself was very simple, and displayed no fancy font style or background. It simply read: "Quit your writing career, Uesugi. A warning is only fair. Decide what's more precious to you: your life or your career. Choose your gold. Signed - 24"

Eiri let out the tense breath he'd been holding and very well rolled his eyes; somebody's not only been reading too many whodunits, but also has waaaay too much time on their hands.

Now, this wasn't the first time he'd had received the "odd letter", but this _was_ the first time he'd received the odd letter addressing him by his family name, Uesugi. Not many people knew his real name; a fact that he didn't plan on changing any time soon. And by the way, what the hell was that about gold? And what kind of a name is '24'?

He figured the sender was just some loser who really needed to spend some time in the real world - and get a girlfriend while he was at it. But it still bothered him; _who_ sent it? Could it really just be some teenage punk with greasy, multi-colored hair and a geeky demeanor that screamed "computer hacker", who had exceptional information-gathering skills, and didn't seem to care that novelists didn't have time to deal with such amateurish crap - or was this threat real for once?

He glanced at the return address, and mentally gasped when he noticed it - or rather, the _lack_ of it. How the hell do you send email without letting the recipient see your return address?

Quickly, he made a mental list of all the people who had his private address: Mika, Tatsuha, Tohma, and his editor. That's it. No one else. He never even gave the address to Shuichi, for fear that he'd most definitely unintentionally leak it somehow.

_But why would any of them send me shit like this?_ Eiri thought. _No, not my editor; she simply has nothing in hell to gain from it. Mika? No, despite the fact that my dear aneki disapproves of my scandalous choice of careers, her pride would never allow her to steep so low as to send threatening emails. Besides, she's more of the straight-forward type; meaning that when she wants to tell me something, she'll track me down and say it to my face - no letters, no emails, not even phone calls would do for her. As for her hubby, well, that pretentious bastard loves me too much to bug me with something so stupid and - like as in the case with my sister - so beneath him. Besides; anonymous threats simply ain't his style. Maybe it was Tatsuha? ...Nah._ Eiri snorted. _My promiscuous-monk of a brother couldn't care less what I do for a living. Hell, I could be _number one _on _Japan's Most Wanted_, or even the world's most infamous and feared terrorist, and yet my otouto wouldn't mind. That is, as long as I didn't threaten the life of one particular lace-pants-wearing pop-star._ He smirked, but it didn't last long.

_Or maybe one of them gave the address away?_ Eiri let his head fall into his hands. The possibilities were endless. Did he really have time to ponder them all? No. Was there even any _point_ in pondering? No. So why even worry? _Aw, fuck it. I doubt this incident will happen again anyway. Besides, I have work to do._

So he proceeded to delete the email and continue in his attempts to overcome his case of writers block so he could write another chapter for his new, soon-to-be-bestselling book.

Still, he wondered...

**o---OoO---o**

"Oh, Yuki! I made breakfast for you!" Shuichi said in a sing-song voice while standing proudly by the table, on which sat a plate of something which only remotely resembled breakfast.

_You've _got _to be kidding me,_ Eiri thought. He wearily eyed the creation on the plate, and then gazed irately at the impossible mess covering the stove and all the counters, which just hours before had been absolutely spotless. Apparently, Shuichi had been exercising his long-dormant, near non-existent culinary abilities.

Shu, oblivious to the older man's currently rising temper, grinned widely; obviously very proud of his cooking "accomplishment".

Eiri pretended to ignore what the purple-eyed baka said. "You're still here? Don't you have to go to work?"

The singer's look of pride and happiness faltered, "Aw, come on Yuki! I wanted to make it up to you for bugging you earlier this morning. Won't you eat?"

_You call making a mess, and - to top it off - asking me to eat something even a dog wouldn't accept 'making it up to me'?_ "Fine." Eiri growled after a moment. "But only if you shut that annoying mouth of yours."

The sound of Shu's jaw snapping shut practically echoed throughout the spacious and modern, yet currently disheveled kitchen.

Eiri exhaled angrily and sat down at the table. "What is it anyway?"

"It's an omelet."

_That's what you _say _anyway,_ he thought.

Slowly, he bit into the near-unidentifiable "omelet", chewing carefully, as if concerned about the safety of doing such a thing. After all, it was _Shuichi_ who made it, so who knows _what_ sort of "ingredients" it contained.

Eiri finally swallowed. Without a word, he suddenly stood up and stalked towards the front door.

"Y-Yuki!" Shu shouted in surprise and sorrow, "Aren't you gonna finish it?"

He turned his head towards Shuichi before opening the door, "You couldn't pay me to eat that revolting shit. I have errands to run, so go to work. And _don't_ forget to clean up that damn mess! OR ELSE!"

**o---OoO---o**

The mid-afternoon sun, which shone pleasantly through a large window K had opened in Studio B7, found Shuichi working on his newest song, or rather, more accurately, _attempting_ to work on his newest song.

The small vocalist leaned back against the wall, idly holding the microphone to his chest. His mind was obviously somewhere else, and his face wore the unmistakable look of heartbreak.

"Shuichi is there something bothering you?" asked Hiro in his soft, gentle voice while setting his guitar down. "You've been really out of it since you got here; not wanting to sing, not writing any new lyrics, and letting your mind wander."

Normally Shuichi was as hyper as a little kid who had just eaten candy, so Hiro got worried anytime the vocalist was somber - especially to this degree.

"Yeah, Shindou," Suguru chimed in. "All your mistakes have forced us to start over nearly 30 times, AND IT'S REALLY BEGINNING TO PISS ME OFF!" He didn't quite shout that last part, but hissed in a furious tone.

Shuichi looked down. "I'm sorry, guys. Really. Let me try once more and I'll get it right."

_Like hell he will,_ thought Suguru. _At this rate, we'll never finish the song, and if that rate continues, our CD will never get out, and then the whole world will miss out on hearing my genius keyboarding skills. hmph._

As Suguru's thoughts had predicted, Shuichi once again screwed up.

Unfortunately though, it was at that moment that K's last strand of almost non-existent patience snapped. He whipped the Magnum .44 out from its holster, and aimed right at Shu's head.

"Alright, everybody out! Single file!" He yelled commandingly. "I'm gonna have a chat with our little screwed-up sorry-excuse-for-a-singer."

Nobody challenged him. Hiro, Suguru, and Sakano wordlessly scurried out the door - glad to escape K's wrath (not to mention his gun) for the time being.

The door shut with a bang. It echoed in the now near-empty room. Shu felt fear creep up his collar - and it wasn't from the painful silence that followed the departure of his friends - no, it was from the cold steel of the shiny barrel of K's Magnum pressed against his forehead.

"Now," K said in a soft, yet insensitive tone. "You are either going to tell me what's wrong with you so I can fix it and you can start singing again - or I will fill that empty head of yours with a bullet."

Shuichi said nothing. He just stared at the ground, trembling from fear at having the gun pressed so hard on his head. K sighed and put the little - yet quite deadly - weapon back into its holster.

K straightened up and crossed his arms. "Are you sick?"

Shuichi shook his head.

"Have you been missing sleep?"

Again he shook his head.

"Have you been eating properly?"

This time he nodded.

"Is everything alright with your family?"

Another nod.

"Then what the hell is wrong with you?"

Shuichi's face blushed red as he looked up at K, than down again before answering.

"Y-you see...Yuki's been, well, kinda _cold_ to me lately, and-"

K didn't bother to listen to the rest of what his young charge was saying.

Eiri again.

_God, why did Shuichi have to meet that bastard? And more than that, why did he have to fall in love with him?_ The American rubbed his forehead with his thumb and forefinger while continuing to think. _Every time that stupid writer gets mad at Shuichi, he comes in to work depressed beyond any help. This has _got _to stop._

"...and I've been racking my brains for what I could have done to upset..." Shuichi kept on blabbering.

"Goddammit!" Shouted K so loud that it nearly startled the soul out of Shu's body.

"I'm gonna shoot him."

"NOOOO! K, ONEGAI! I'LL DO BETTER, I PRO- no, SWEAR! I SWEAR!" Shuichi grabbed K's ankle as the American began to stalk out of the room. "PLEASE DON'T SHOOT MY YUKI!"

K suddenly stopped, and looked down at the pink-haired boy he was dragging across the floor. "Hm? Yuki? Who said anything about shooting Yuki? I meant that I was gonna shoot you."

With that, he took aim at Shuichi's head, and fired.

**END EPISODE 1**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": K shoots Shuichi? What will be the aftermath of that little incident? Plus, we might learn just a pinch more about the mysterious '24'. Maybe there will even be a lemon involving Yuki and Shu awaiting us! ...so tune in soon for the next exciting installment!)

**Japanese words used:**  
Gomen – I'm sorry  
Baka – idiot, fool  
Aneki – older sister  
Otouto – little brother  
Onegai - please

**A/N:** (9/5/07) Hello! I'm Arekkusu, and this is my first attempt at writing fan fiction. Actually, this is my first attempt at writing any kind of story period. I really hope you like it, and if not, that you can take it out on my inexperience lol. There is only one thing I ask, and that is to review if you have time - please! No flames please, but I do appreciate _constructive_ criticism. I also welcome notices about misspellings, grammatical errors, storyline inconsistencies, etc. Thanks so much for reading my fic!


	2. I only wish THAT were the punchline

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 2: ...I Only Wish THAT was the Punchline**

Hiro thoughtfully fingered the quite-visible bullet hole in the floor of studio B7.

"I wonder what Seguchi-san will say about this?" He thought aloud.

He and the others had been waiting patiently outside the door when they heard a shot ring out. They rushed in after only a couple second's hesitation, and saw Shuichi lying on the floor and K standing over him holding a smoking gun. The sight caused nothing more than raised eyebrows from the two band mates, but was enough to nearly send the highly apprehensive Sakano to an early grave.

"Probably nothing." Said Suguru in answer to Hiro's question. "Serves Shindou right; K-san should have shot twice." He turned his nose up haughtily.

"No, because than there'd just be more of a mess." Hiro replied lazily, taking a glance over at Sakano who was worriedly fanning Shuichi's face with a handkerchief. After checking to see if he was still alive, Hiro had carried Shu to a small sofa they had in the studio.

The trigger-happy American had purposely missed his head by a mere two inches and shot into the floor - certain it would scare Shuichi into working again. The only catch was that he'd have to wait 'till Shu regained consciousness to find out for sure.

The American in question was calmly seated in a nearby chair reading a newspaper - seemingly without a care in the world.

Hiro looked at him with mild distaste; where on earth did K's obsession with weapons - particularly guns - come from? And why does he insist on using them so often? Although he'd never admit it to anyone - especially to the man himself - K's near-unrivaled professional usage of the minuscule canons kinda turned him on. Why? He wasn't very sure. Maybe it was that sexy stance he took whenever he got into firing mode? Or maybe it was how his voice took on that intimidating tone?...

Hiro shook his head to force the thoughts out - he'd felt a blush coming and did _not_ need anyone to notice it. A quick and discreet glance towards his pants told him he made the right decision. Better change the subject now.

"Hey, um, anything interesting in today's news?"

K shrugged without looking up. "Oh, just the usual stuff. Jewelry store got robbed...escaped psycho from a nut house still at large...teens petition to ditch school uniforms...and my personal favorite: a tourist sues this local restaurant for failing to inform him that sushi is actually _raw_ fish - isn't that just inane?" He chuckled. "Yep - just plain usual stuff."

Hiro raised an eyebrow, "You call all that stuff 'usual'? Makes me shudder to imagine the type of 'news' that happens in _your_ country. And since when do petitions from _teens_ carry enough weight to land in the paper?"

**o---OoO---o**

Eiri returned to the apartment the minute Shuichi left. Saying he had errands was just an excuse to leave; there wasn't any point in staying home when he couldn't get any work done.

Now the current quiet of the atmosphere gave him the calm he needed to write. He was glad when Shuichi had left for the day (peace at last!), but without meaning to, his mind began to wander from thoughts of his novel to thoughts of his little pink-haired lover.

He stopped typing without realizing he had done so.

First he thought about that god-awful "breakfast" Shuichi had made him. _Where does he get off trying to cook anyway?_ Pushing the thought from his mind, he stared off into the distance and imagined running his hands through Shu's soft, freshly washed pink hair. Yeah, that's better: imagining his Shu-toy doing what he did best - giving him pleasure. He could practically see it: Shu slowly getting undressed in front of him, carefully and teasingly removing each article of clothing before dropping it gently to the floor. He imagined his little lover gazing up at him with those seductive violet eyes, all shiny from arousal, slowly tracing his fingers over his - _**BRRIIIIIING!!!**_

Eiri jumped with surprise at the shrill ring of his cell phone.

All previous thoughts shattered.

_**BRIIIIIIIING!!!**_

Momentarily startled, Eiri paused a second to just stare at the phone - which was next to his computer - before answering.

He took a deep breath to finish calming himself.

"Hai?"

"Ah, Eiri Yuki-san! Or should I say: Eiri _Uesugi_-san. Hard at work so early in the day?" The voice was silky smooth, yet carried menacing, acid tones.

"Who the hell is this?" He made a quick glance at the phone's caller ID and noticed that it was blank. How the hell...

"Oh? Wouldn't you like to know," said the voice teasingly.

"Listen bastard, I don't have time for this. If it isn't important, LEAVE ME-" Eiri suddenly realized that this call was taking place on his private phone - a phone only a few had the number to...

"Who said it wasn't important? I had asked you to quit writing - and I had asked nicely. Yet, what are you doing still typing away?" The sinister voice sounded sorry.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Eiri suddenly stood up angrily.

"You know what I mean. But, since your sleep, and _sex_ (he added mockingly) deprived brain can't figure it out yet, I'll explain: I'm the one who sent you the email earlier this morning - and I mean business. So please do me, and not to mention _yourself_ a favor by quitting. By the way, you shouldn't stand up so suddenly when you're tired. It is bad for the heart. Goodbye."

The buzz of the dial tone brought Eiri out of his shock from hearing this stranger tell him what had just done. Was he being spied on? How? Probably one of those bitches he had given his keys to snuck in and planted a camera. He sighed and sat back down, then swept an uneasy gaze around the room.

_I'm just paranoid. Wait, why am I paranoid? Because some freak made a lucky guess at my movements? Hell, that's the reaction _anyone _would have at getting a threatening phone call. It was an easy guess. That's all it was. I'm just tired. I get the odd letter and phone call all the time. Just..._ Eiri's head began to nod off from exhaustion. How long had it been since he slept? _not on...my...private...pho-_

His sleeping head fell onto his keyboard, his cheek pressing down several keys, causing endless lines of pure typos to fill the screen.

**o---OoO---o**

It was late afternoon, almost evening, when Shuichi dragged himself through the door of the spacious apartment he shared with Eiri. His exhaustion wasn't only from his extended workday, but from nearly having the ghost scared out of him and sent to heaven from his manager's little ploy. _Damn him._ was all Shuichi's tired mind could think. It had worked though. Shu had woken up to K's face looming over his, which nearly shocked him back into unconsciousness, but a gun to his head kept him awake. K backed away from Shu when he was satisfied that the singer was indeed awake.

"I don't think Shuichi will be causing anymore trouble now, will you Shu-chan?" His tone made it crystal-clear what the consequences would be if he did otherwise.

Shuichi fervently shook his head and ran over to his mic.

He actually got three songs finished that day.

But now, all he could think about was a nice hot shower. Mm! The warm water would feel so good running down his body, washing away all the sweat and stress that had built up throughout the day. Than maybe, if Eiri was in a good mood, they'd have some alone time...

_Speaking of Yuki, I think I'll go check on him - quietly, of course._

He removed his shoes by the front door and silently made his way to Eiri's office. Boy was he glad the floor didn't creak!

Gently, he turned the knob and peeked inside. Eiri's head lay on his keyboard facing the wall opposite the door. Locks of blond hair dangled over the edges of the keyboard.

Shu smiled and tip-toed towards his lover.

When he reached him, he lovingly stroked his head, gazing at the peacefully sleeping face. Any and all thoughts of his previous coldness towards him were forgotten. All he could think about right now was just how beautiful and innocent Eiri looked while sleeping. In this state, Eiri was absolutely helpless; at the mercy of anyone who happened upon him like this. Completely oblivious to his surroundings. Shu let his fingers mingle with the blond hair, sweeping it out of his eyes - eyes that suddenly opened and stared right back at him.

Shuichi gasped in surprise, jumped back, and put his hands behind his back. He guiltily looked down and drew small circles on the ground with the toe of his right foot.

"Um, Yuki? H-how are you feeling now?"

Silence.

Then the sound of a chair sliding back.

He looked up at the sound only to see Eiri's eyes just inches from his own - bright, golden, _wide awake_ eyes that dazzled with lust.

Overcome with relief that Eiri wasn't still mad at him - or at least, _appeared_ to not be mad at him - Shu tilted his head back and parted his lips, allowing himself and his lover to engage in a deep kiss. Their tongues slid in and out of each other's mouths, sucking and tasting, each enjoying the flavor of the other's mouth.

A moan filled Shuichi's mouth when he felt Eiri's arms wrap around him to pull him closer. He rubbed his chest against Eiri's, allowing him to feel every breath his lover took - which were becoming more like pants than actual breaths. Oh, he loved being held this way! Being in Eiri's strong arms gave him a feeling of absolute security unlike anything he'd ever felt in his life - nothing could hurt him as long as he was there, safely snug against his warm body.

"...Ah, Yu...ki...mmm," Shuichi felt a strong yet gentle hand caress the bulge on his crotch over his clothing - clothing he now saw as nothing but an obstruction.

Shu grabbed at his zipper, quickly trying to remove it, but Eiri's hand pushed it away so he could do it himself. Changing his mind though, he picked up his pink-haired lover and carried him to the sofa he had in his office. He dropped Shu onto the plush cushions, than climbed on top of him.

Another kiss had both men panting, and another crotch-massage from Eiri's skilled hands had Shu moaning once more. This time, Eiri didn't try to undo the zipper - he just yanked the pants right off his thin little toy.

Just a hint of a smirk played across the blond's face when he noticed that Shu had gone commando - even to work(!?) - aw fuck it! He liked his boy ready.

"Ooh, Yuki...touch me...please..."

Eiri cocked his head at Shuichi. _Time to have some fun_, he thought sadistically.

"Hm? You want me to what? Touch you? Now, why on earth would I do a thing like that?" He trapped both of Shu's hands above his head with one of his own and starred down at him, smirking teasingly. "Maybe I just feel like looking at you."

Shu's erection was becoming painful. "Yuki! Please! You know what I-"

Eiri gently brushed his fingers over the younger man's hardened member. "You mean like this?"

"Ooooooh...yes...wha? Don't stop Yuki! Why'd you stop?!"

Eiri merely shrugged, "Maybe I don't feel like continuing. Maybe I just feel like torturing you." He said, still teasing. He tightened his hold on Shu's wrists and sat directly on top of his legs to restrict any movements from them. With his free hand, he flicked at Shu's left nipple, and felt even more blood go south when he heard Shu's sharp intake of breath at his action.

He ran his hand over Shu's lean chest, admiring his small lover's physique.

Finally relenting to his whine for more touching, Eiri leaned down and jammed his lips against Shuichi's in a wet, mind-numbing kiss. Tongues slid in and out of each other's mouths. Shuichi sucked hungrily on Eiri's bottom lip, loving the taste, and enjoying the softness of it.

Eiri arched his back to allow room for his hand to unzip his own pants and pull them off. Unlike his lover however, he had boxers on - but not for long. Soon all articles of clothing both men had previously been wearing were now strewn carelessly on the floor.

Eiri reached over Shuichi's head for some lube that was lying on the end table by the couch. Shu's eyes followed Eiri's hand and brightened when he saw the object he picked up - they _were_ gonna have a good time!

He released his hold on Shuichi's wrists so he could squeeze some of the squishy substance onto his hand. That hand then gave a generous coating to his own hardened dick. Shu watched his hands; eyes pleading for him to hurry up so he could start work on him.

His pleas were quickly answered when he felt a finger gently pushing some of the lube inside of him. Soon, another finger joined the first, carefully stretching the opening in preparation for something better. Every now and again Eiri would purposely stroke Shu's prostate, sending waves of pleasure through the teen's body. "Oooooh, nnngh! Oh...yes, yes, yesssss!" Shuichi moaned with pleasure at his lover's touch. He couldn't wait for Eiri to actually be inside of him! But, before that happened, he took Shu's entire member in his hands and stroked it, slowly at first, than gradually increasing the speed.

Long, melodic moans escaped the vocalist's now breathless lips at the indescribable pleasure he was receiving. "Ah, ah...ooh...oooooh...motto, motto Yuki!"

The blond novelist, now hot from the foreplay, needed no more invitation. Time to get this party started!

Bringing his hips up closer to Shuichi's, he let the tip of his cock brush the freshly prepared opening. Shu wrapped his legs around his lover's waist, pulling him closer. He was just about to enter him now...

_**BRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIING! BRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!**_

Eiri cursed at himself for not turning off the damn phone before they got started. The lovers tried to ignore it, knowing it would stop after only so many rings.

And it did.

Only to start ringing once more.

_**BRIIIIIIIIIIIIIING! BRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIING!!**_

Again they ignored it. But the idiot on the other end continued to call back...

"Damn fucking phone!" Eiri cursed and sprang up from the couch. In two strides he was at the desk, picked up the phone, and was about to terminate the call and turn it off, when he noticed the caller ID - and saw that it was blank...

Growing a little uneasy, he decided to answer it.

"Hai?"

"Ah, Uesugi-san. How nice to hear your voice again. I trust you are doing well?" It was the same sinister voice from before.

"What the fuck are -"

"Good, good. You _are_ doing well! Especially now that you are fulfilling one of your needs." A dry chuckle played across the line. "I trust you slept well too?"

Eiri's eyes narrowed, and his heart rate increased slightly - this guy was doing it again - telling him his movements.

Eiri growled in anger as he slammed the phone back onto the desk - terminating the call - and strode angrily towards the bookshelf, mercilessly ripping books from the shelves and throwing them to the floor. He was searching for some kind of camera.

_Okay, cameras are usually placed in areas that aren't used much - which is why they aren't noticed right away, and also,_ his next thought made him search even more fervently, _they can be as small as a teddy bear's eye. Sometimes even smaller. DAMN! If that's the case, then how the hell will I find it?_ Despite that, he continued to search, growing more frustrated and angry as he went.

Shuichi watched in horror as his blond lover seemed to go mad and began trashing his own office. He was so scared he dared not question him. He just sat trembling with fear and confusion - he'd never seen Eiri so angry, so _frantic_. He seemed to be searching for something, but apparently wasn't having any luck.

Only after every book lay unceremoniously on the floor did he stop, and swiftly examined every nook and cranny of the shelf.

Finding nothing, he went to the window - which was closed and covered by a curtain - examined the rod and fabric: nothing.

Next he turned his attention to the couch. He suddenly strode back towards it - Shuichi cringed in fear at his approaching lover. Eiri brusquely pushed Shu off the couch and yanked up the cushions. Apparently still not finding what he was looking for, he began looking under the couch, and then started searching his desk. Next he glanced at the walls. No pictures or plants that could potentially hide a camera were there, and he didn't notice any lenses on the walls. So, how the hell did this guy know his every movement? How was he spying on him?

Unable to take in any longer, Eiri Yuki stormed out of the room, leaving behind a very scared, very confused, very startled, and otherwise very unsatisfied strawberry-haired lover.

Shuichi, unable to handle all these emotions at once, began to cry.

**END EPISODE 2**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": annoying anonymous phone calls and emails are just that: annoying - but not dangerous. This stranger, who seems pretty darned determined to get Eiri to quit his career, is beginning to get a little perturbed since all he's succeeded in doing is piss Eiri off. Will he resort to more extreme methods to try to get his message across? Also, how will Shuichi deal with Eiri's strange behavior? If you want to know how these events will carry out, tune in again soon!)

**Japanese words used:**  
Hai - yes  
Motto - more

**Author's Notes:** I'm baaaaack! ...sorry I took so long ". Thanks for reading my second chapter - it must mean that the first chapter was enough to seize your interest - and I intend to keep that interest of yours seized lol.

glomps to all who've stayed with my story so far!


	3. It's a DISASTER!

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 3: Is it a Bird? Is it a Plane? No...it's a DISASTER!**

"Whoa, slow down there. Better yet start over - I didn't understand you the first time. Okay so, Yuki-san did what?"

The red-haired guitarist sat on his sofa, smothered by his best friend/band mate, who was currently soaking his shoulder with tears. Approximately 15 minutes ago, Hiroshi Nakano had been awakened from a peaceful, not to mention _much needed_ sleep by a constant banging to his front door. The person he let in only remotely looked like Shuichi. The distraught singer's tear-stained face was distorted with all kinds of emotions. After nearly 10 minutes of comforting his friend, he finally got him calmed down enough to talk about what had happened. So far though, he was having a hard time making sense of it.

"Okay okay. So let me get the straight; while you and Yuki-san were, uh, _busy_, he got a phone call. Then proceeded to tear his office apart - as if searching for something - and apparently being unable to find it, stormed out of the house. Am I correct?"

Shu nodded; face still buried in Hiro's shoulder.

_At this rate_, Hiro thought while glancing at the growing wet spot on his sleeve, _I'll run out of shirts to wear that aren't stained with salty water._ He smiled inwardly thinking of all the times Shuichi had come to him for comfort during rough times, and of all the resulting tear-stained shirts. He chuckled to himself _what would Shu do without me?_ He continued to hold his lead singer in his arms, soothingly stroking his back. Although Shuichi would often come crying to Hiro whenever something bad happened to him - an event that seemed to be occurring more frequently - Hiro never minded it. In fact, it made him feel...needed. A feeling he'd been lacking, that is, up until he met Shu.

"Did you try following him after he left?"

"No! hiccup sob Yuki doesn't like me around when he's mad, hiccup and if he caught me following him...well, sob I DON'T WANNA THINK ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN!!! waaaah" A fresh stream of tears flooded out of the singers ever-watering eyes.

"You know what? Why don't you just stay here for the rest of the night and we'll sort things out in the morning, okay? I'm sure Yuki-san has a very good explanation for what happened." _Actually_, thought Hiro vehemently, _He'd _better _have a very good explanation or he'll have to answer to me for making Shuichi cry like this_.

**o---OoO---o**

Shuichi's eyes flew open as he awoke abruptly. He was sweating and panting. Did he just have a nightmare? He couldn't remember.

He sat up, trying to get his breathing under control, and let his gaze wander around the familiar room. Light from the full moon streamed in through the window blinds, giving the place an eerie white glow.

Soft snoring drifted out from the bedroom. Hiro was sound asleep.

Shu laid down and tried to go back to sleep, but wasn't successful. He had too much on his mind. Unable to fight his insomnia any longer, the singer stood up and walked to the window. It was quiet - not even the sound of insects could be heard.

_Damn, what's the matter with me? Why do I always bother Hiro like this whenever something happens between me and Yuki? It's not fair for him. It really isn't. He's always so nice to me, and I do nothing but bug him. Maybe I should just go to a hotel or something whenever Yuki kicks me out. That way I don't wear out his patience._ He felt tears welling up. _I don't want to lose my best friend._

He sniffed and he sat down. _I miss Yuki. I wish I could be sleeping with him right now. Even though he doesn't let me cuddle up next to him, at least we'd be in the same bed, and I could watch him sleep. I wish I knew what was going on, than maybe I could do something to fix it._

Shu noticed a pen and notepad on the table near the couch. He picked it up and examined it. The notepad was filled with stationary-type paper, and several tiny musical notes randomly decorated the background. Acting from a whim, he scribbled some words onto one of the pages. New lyrics maybe? He looked over what he'd written, _no_ he sighed. _Too damn depressing. If I try to make a song out of these, I'll get questions. Questions I don't feel like answering._

He tore out the page and crumpled it. Still holding it in his hand, he laid back down and stared at the ceiling for the longest time. Thoughts of Yuki, his friends, his work, and all sorts of other things flitted through his mind, before sleep finally claimed him once more.

**o---OoO---o**

_**BRRIIIIIIIING! BRRIIIIIIIIING**_

Hiro groaned and tried to cover the sounds by smothering his head with a pillow - but to no avail. The phone kept ringing.

_**BRRIIIIIING! BRRIIIIIIIIIING**_

"Alright! Alright! Just shut up!"

He stood, rubbing some sleep from his eyes. A glance at the clock told him it was 6am - not a cordial time to be sending and receiving phone calls. Nevertheless, he answered. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Put Shuichi on."

"Huh? Yuki-san? What the hell do you want?"

"You heard me - _put Shuichi on the phone_."

_Not even a hello? What's with this bastard?_ "What makes you think he's here?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Nakano. I _know_ he's there."

"Gut instinct, eh?"

Eiri growled, "Just put the baka on the line will you?"

Eiri's arrogant behavior was really beginning to piss Hiro off. "He's still asleep. Give me a good reason why I should wake him, 'cause in case you've forgotten, _you_ are the reason he's here after all."

"...Something's happened and I need to talk to him, _please_."

Hiro sighed - he knew that if he didn't give Shuichi the phone, Eiri would just call right back - and wouldn't stop till he'd gotten what he wanted, and that was to talk to Shuichi. "Alright, but be nice to him, okay?"

Hiro walked into living room where he found Shu sound asleep, and gently nudged his shoulder.

"Shu...Shuichi...SHUICHI! Wake up, little buddy; Phone call from Yuki-san."

Shuichi sprang out of his sleep at hearing his lover's name. "Huh?" still slightly groggy. "Phone call from Yuki?"

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed the phone from Hiro's hands and pressed it against his ear.

"H-hello?"

"So you're awake." Came the cold reply.

"Um, yes Yuki; I'm awake. Is there something wro-"

"Don't speak. Just get your little ass over here. _Right_ now." beeeep went the dial tone as Yuki hung up.

Shu's face filled with worry and confusion as he handed the phone back to his friend.

"Well?" Asked Hiro questioningly.

"Yuki wants me home...but he sounded a little upset. I'm gonna go see what's wrong."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

Shuichi looked back at his friend and shook his head. "Not necessary, but thanks for asking, and thanks for letting me crash here for the night. Oh, and Hiro?"

Shu ran up to him and gave him an affectionate, yet crushing hug. "Arigatou gozaimasu for always being there for me! Ja ne!"

Hiroshi smiled sadly as he watched his best friend leave. Even thought the little strawberry-haired singer could sometimes be a real pain in the ass - check that - a HUGE pain in the ass, he was still lovable - and could really grow on you. He shook his head and looked down at the spot on the couch where his friend had slept. There was still a slight impression in the cushions to show that someone had just slept on it.

_Oh well,_ thought Hiro while sliding into that same spot, _might as well go back to sleep. Take care now, Shuichi_. He was settling himself in when he felt a slight crackle under him. Curious, he reached under his side and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. He smoothed it out and instantly recognized Shu's handwriting - it was the lyrics he'd written the night before. _Oh, Shu - is this how he really makes you feel?_

**o---OoO---o**

"YUUKIIIII?"

Shuichi burst into his blond lover's home, and then stopped cold. He couldn't believe the spectacle before him; it was unbelievable... It was incredible... It was... a **DISASTER!**

In the kitchen, cabinets hung open (some on only 1 hinge), and dishes, silverware, food items, chairs, and more, decorated the floor - in several pieces. The living room wasn't much better, what with the stuffing slashed and ripped out of the sofa, television smashed, and all other kinds of objects littered on the floor. The rest of the house was in similar condition.

The entire house was trashed. There were even gashes in the walls.

Shock and bewilderment flooded Shuichi - what the hell happened here? Did Yuki do this too?

_Oh god - Yuki! I have to go find him._

Shuichi ran down the hall calling for Yuki, but stopped mid-syllable when he spotted the blond novelist standing cross-armed in his bedroom - staring at something.

Carefully, Shuichi made his way towards him, unsure of what to say.

"Um...-"

"Shut up."

Shuichi crept closer and turned his gaze to whatever Eiri was looking at - and gasped.

There, etched on the wall in big, dark red letters, was the word "quit." Right underneath, and written in the same print, was: 'Choose your gold. - 24'

Poor Shu was dumbfounded. 'Quit'? What the hell? Choose _what_ gold?? Who was '24'??? And why the fucking hell was the house trashed like this???!!!

"Get out Shuichi."

"B-but, you just said that you wanted me here, and now you want me to leave?"

"I meant get out of the room, moron."

With that, Eiri stalked out of the room with long angry strides. Shuichi followed after him.

"Yuki please, tell me what this is all about. I need to-"

"SHUT THE HELL UP! Last night I went out and left my apartment clean enough to suit a queen. This morning, however, I return to find it in this _very_ chaotic state. Now, I'd like you to explain." Eiri looked Shu straight in the eye when he said this.

Shuichi's eyes widened as he stared back in shock _Yuki thinks _I _did this???!!!_

"What do you mean, 'explain'??!! You really think I'd do something like this? Eiri Yuki, you know that I'd never, NEVER do anything like this, no matter WHAT you do to me!!! You know that! How could-"

Eiri sighed, _beyond_ frustrated. He'd returned home just after 5am, and what he saw shocked him so badly that he dropped his keys; his house had been trashed from top to bottom - nothing had been spared. He slowly went from room to room examining each new mess that greeted him. Who the hell did it? He finally got his answer when he walked into his bedroom and saw the writing on the wall. The writing, staring back at him in all its deep red glory, made his blood run cold - now he knew who had done it. But, he couldn't believe it. He didn't _want_ to believe it. His brain just wouldn't allow him to accept the fact that this spying stalker of his had actually been in his house - _in his house_.

Still stunned, he thought of calling his little lover to come over. He didn't know why - I mean, what the hell could the little brat do to help anyway? Even so, He summoned him anyway. It wasn't hard finding him; he figured he'd be at Hiroshi's place - and was correct in his assumption.

He didn't see Shu arrive, but didn't need to since he could hear him. He didn't answer Shuichi's cries of his name, but instead waited for him to come to the bedroom, knowing he would do so after he got over his initial shock.

Despite the fact that Eiri had plenty of time to think before Shuichi had arrived, he didn't know what to say to him. He even began to regret calling him over. Still so overcome with bewilderment and anger though, he couldn't control himself and basically asked his strawberry-haired lover if he had done it - that is - trashed his apartment. The shocked and hurt look on the younger man's face nearly made Eiri cry. Shu immediately went on about why he would never do such a thing, but Eiri didn't bother listening to the rest of what he said. _Of course I know you didn't do this you little baka; I know who did. But I don't want to accept it... so I asked you... I'm sorry... that I hurt you._ Now if only he could say that aloud...

"Shuichi," Shu stopped talking instantly. "I know you didn't do this,"

"Then why did you ask me to 'explain'?"

"Nothing. Just forget I said that. Of course you didn't do this. You'd never do this. I just needed to talk to you. No, I just wanted to see you. No...argh! Just leave, okay? Leave. Now. No arguing with me either."

"But, Yuki! I can help you clean up and-"

"I SAID NO ARGUING DAMMIT! NOW GET THE HELL OUT!!!!"

Eiri looked down to see two large, tear-filled, violet eyes stare back up at him. Shuichi swallow hard, than took off.

The sound of the front door being slammed echoed throughout his home.

What the hell was going on here?

**o---OoO---o**

From his window, Eiri watched the police drive away after giving them a statement and watching as they surveyed the damage and questioned the neighbors. Nobody seemed to know anything; _none_ of the neighbors reported hearing any odd noises coming from Eiri's flat, nor had they seen any strangers come by recently.

_How the fucking hell is that possible? To destroy every breakable object in an apartment and not make a single noise?_

Eiri looked around at the mess again, still in utter dismay. He didn't want to clean it up. In fact, he never even wanted to call the police, but Tohma had mysteriously found out about the incident (turns out Shu had told Hiro, Hiro told Suguru, Suguru told Tatsuha (who was at the studio looking for Ryuichi), he in turn told Ryu, Ryu told Noriko, K overheard (don't ask how) and told Sakano, and Sakano told his employer, Tohma.) and insisted that he call the police - and I mean _insisted_ as in: if you don't call, I will - type of insisted. Tohma had even accompanied the police to Eiri's house. Of course Eiri was none to happy about that.

"Look, you didn't need to come here." Eiri said, a bit irritated,

"But I did, Eiri-kun. I need to protect you from things like this."

"Bullshit. If that's the case, then where the hell were you when I got that first email? And those phone calls? And also, when THIS happened?!" He gestured with his arms at the mess that surrounded them.

"Wait," Said Tohma suddenly, "What email? What phone calls? Eiri, is someone harassing you? Why haven't you told me about it already?"

Eiri sighed and wanted to sit down, then suddenly remembered that all the furniture was broken too. Smashed to bits. "I didn't tell you because it was none of your business."

Tohma bit his lip to hid the hurt he felt. "I understand if you don't want me involved in your personal life, but this is serious. Something needs to be done!"

"Yeah. Something needs to be done. But it's still none of your goddamn business."

An awkward silence filled the air between them.

Eventually, Tohma sighed in resignation. "Eiri-kun, I am always here if you need me, and you have your siblings." Eiri snorted, but Tohma ignored it and continued, "If you ever, _ever_ need something, just ask and I'll help you."

"Leave, Tohma."

Tohma Seguchi let his shoulders fall as he slowly turned around. "I will comply with your wishes, Eiri-kun, but please allow me help you find this bastard so he can be put away."

"We both know that if you really want something done - you'll just do it - no matter what _I_ say."

Tohma was about to protest, then thought better of it. Eiri was right - sort of - so he let it drop.

"Take care now."

_Whatever._ Eiri mentally replied.

**o---OoO---o**

Shuichi Shindou idly stared out the window of a cafe where he and Hiro were having dinner. He was feeling miserable - again. First, he returns to his lover's flat only to find it trashed - and to top it off - gets blamed for it. Second, as a result of being difficult at work again, K had come up with another ingenious way to "get him motivated" - and that certainly did not go well. Third, Eiri changed the lock on his door - and wasn't answering it either. Nor was he answering his phone. To sum it all up: his day hadn't gone well.

"Don't worry too much about Yuki-san. He's a grown man and can take care of himself. What you _should_ be worried about is how you're gonna explain the explosion to Seguchi-san tomorrow." Hiro smirked. He was referring to the method K had used to "encourage" Shuichi earlier that day. Hiro brought it up in an attempt to make his smaller friend smile, but it didn't work. Hiro's smirk faded - Shu was _really_ depressed.

"Hey..."

"No, Hiro. I know you're only trying to cheer me up, but it isn't working. I just can't stop thinking about everything that's happened. None of it makes sense, you know? I just don't know what to do."

"...Shuichi, I found the lyrics you wrote last night."

"And?"

But before Hiro could answer though, they were politely interrupted by a blond-haired man, early 30's, dressed elegantly, and wearing opaque black sunglasses.

"Sumimasen, gentlemen. May I have a word with you?"

The man removed his glasses. Both teens recognized him instantly, and were completely shocked. The man was none other than Tohma Seguchi! What on earth was N-G's rich and powerful president doing in a tacky cafe like this? If he had wanted a word with them, wouldn't it have been easier to simply phone, or otherwise have them summoned?

Hiro stood up to offer him his seat. "L-look, I can explain about that explosion, it was-"

Tohma sat and gave Hiro a questioning look. "Explosion? No, I wanted to talk to Shindou-kun about Eiri-san. That is all."

With that, Tohma turned his attention to the confused singer.

"I understand that strange things have been happening to Eiri-san, am I correct?"

Shu sighed and threw his hands up in the air. "You can say that again! It all started with this really weird phone call he got while we were...uh..._talking_, and then suddenly started trashing his own office! He threw all his books off the shelves, tore the cushions from the couch, a-and more. It almost looked like he was looking for something..." With precise details, Shuichi continued to tell about all the events from that point on, up too when his lover forced him to leave after seeing his trashed house.

_Boy, he sure knows how to get Shuichi talking_. Thought Hiro wryly.

Shu stopped to take a breath. "I'm scared for Yuki. He isn't answering the phone, and he changed the locks on his door. I wonder if he's doing okay..."

Tohma leaned over the table and uncharacteristically rested a comforting hand on Shuichi's. "I'm sure that he's doing fine. He probably just wants some uninterrupted time alone so he can clean up and think. I had paid him a visit earlier today, and saw the condition of his home. I was worried about him, but he wouldn't tell me anything either. He even refused my offer to assist in cleaning up."

He straightened himself up and smiled gratefully. "Thank you for telling me this, I greatly appreciate it, Shindou-kun. Oh, and there is no need to let Eiri-san know that you told me all of this - it is unnecessary and may upset him."

Still smiling, Tohma turned his angelic face back towards the guitarist, who was standing by the table, idly listening to the conversation, and cocked an eyebrow.

"Now, Nakano-san. What is this I hear about an _explosion_?"

**o---OoO---o**

It was late, approximately midnight, by the time Shuichi had started on home, or at least, towards the home he shared with Eiri..._Maybe Yuki doesn't even want me there anymore. Maybe that's why he didn't give me a new key._

Despite his doubtful thoughts, Shu continued to walk towards the apartment building. It was quiet, not even any crickets chirping. The walk was uneventful.

The lobby and elevators were quite too.

He approached the door, and hesitated for just a moment before ringing the doorbell.

Nobody answered.

He rang again.

Still, not a peep from inside.

Frustration and concern building up inside of him, Shuichi jabbed repeatedly at the doorbell. When he still got no responds, he fell to his knees. Tears streamed down his face. Shu felt his bottom lip tremble, and watched as sparkling tear drops slid off his face, making tiny dark circles on the concrete ground. He sniffed, resting his head on the door and closing his eyes.

"Move, Baka."

The deep voice from above startled Shuichi back to reality - it was Eiri's! He hadn't even heard him approaching.

Shu jumped up with glee and was about to pounce on his older lover, when he noticed the look in his eyes - there was absolutely no warmth in them. Shuichi slumped his shoulders and looked down, moving out of the way as his the writer put his key though the door's new lock and opened it.

He slowly looked up with a questioning glance aimed at Eiri. The novelist paused, as if considering something, than opened the door a little wider to let Shu in.

He slowly walked inside behind his lover and looked around, expecting the apartment to be in the same condition he'd left it in. To his surprise - the place was no longer a mess - in fact, you could never have been able to tell that just a few hours ago the place had been a total wreck! Everything had been replaced, the etchings in the walls patched up, and the broken items picked up and thrown away.

Eiri turned to Shu's surprised face and smirked, "Did you really expect the place to still be a mess?" Shuichi's blank face gave him his answer. "I'm not a disorderly brat like you."

"Um, Yuki?" came the tiny voice topped with pink hair. "Are things better now? Are you still mad at me?"

Eiri thought a moment, then leaned down and cupped Shu's chin in his hands, bringing his face only centimeters from his own. "I'm going to go take a shower now - want to join me?" His voice already a bit husky.

Shu's eyes instantly turned huge and glassy, eagerly anticipating the fun he and his lover were about to have.

"I take that as a yes then..."

**END EPISODE 3**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": Mmm! A shower lemon - featuring your favorite bishounen couple! But...will that end well? Also, Hiro confronts Eiri about his treatment of Shuichi - how will that turn out? Still ahead: 24's threats are starting to become more serious, but just how much more serious will they become? There is only way to find out, and that is to tune in again during the next showing of MPTG!)

**Japanese words used:**  
Baka - Idiot  
Sumimasen - Excuse me  
Bishounen – Beautiful boy/s  
Arigatou gozaimasu - Thank you (very much)  
Ja ne - Goodbye

**A/n:** (11/03/07) Hi again! This is another really long chapter. There were several places I had considered breaking it off, but since this entire piece is already a complete chapter in the other website I posted it on, I decided to keep it that way when posting it here. I might change that later on though.  
I went over my draft, and I noticed that I used the word "flat" instead of "apartment" once or twice. I hope that doesn't annoy anyone! Sorry, but it's the result of watching BBC's Spooks (or MI-5) too many times (that show ROCKS btw) - the unique way the British pronounce things, and their word substitutes kinda grows on you, well at least with ME it does.

Note to reviewer yukinshu4e: Thanks so much for letting me know the correct usage of "sayonara" and "ja ne"! I had read about it online a long time ago, and completely forgot. Thanks!!!


	4. A sweet shower lemon

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 4: A Sweet Shower Lemon, Then Everything Turns Sour**

Eiri gently swept Shuichi up in his arms, and carried the gorgeous teen into the bathroom, kissing him the entire way.

Once there, both began to strip. Eiri did so quickly, not having any desire to put off the upcoming love-making session any longer than necessary, but Shuichi obviously wasn't thinking along the same wavelength. No, _he_ was taking his sweet time. Slowly and teasingly he pulled his shirt up over his head and dropped it softly to the floor before beginning on the next article of clothing - his jeans. Eiri was about to walk into the shower and suddenly noticed that his pink-haired lover wasn't right next to him. He turned around to see what was taking so long, and paused when he caught sight of the show Shu was putting on for him. He watched, visibly getting turned on with each passing second.

Shu turned towards Eiri, but looked down. A seductive smirk playing across his face. His hand was over the jeans zipper now, and one notch - one notch by painfully slow notch at a time - pulled the metal fastener down. Soft snapping noises accompanied the progression. Meanwhile, the other hand stroked his inner thigh. Squeezing, rubbing, pinching.

The blond novelist's dick twitched impatiently at this spectacle - it was becoming painfully hard - and his patience was wearing thinner by the moment...

_Finally_ the zipper was all the way down, and the little singer put his thumbs inside his jeans and slowly pulled them down - revealing the fact that he again had no underwear on. _Does he even _own _underwear?_ Eiri wondered. Shu's erection, already bulging and begging to be set free, sprang out of his pants the second his jeans were down low enough.

At that moment, Eiri had enough. In two swift strides he gruffly grabbed Shu's thin wrist, and dragged him into the shower where the water had already been turned on. Eiri slammed the shower door behind them. The sudden hot blast from the multiple sprayers made Shuichi gasp, but he quickly adjusted to the temperature. All around them, billows of thick white steam rose up in clouds - completely upping the sex level of the atmosphere by at least 250.

Eiri released his hold on Shuichi's wrist. In responds to that, Shu stood on tiptoe so he could wrap his arms around his beloved's neck, and engage in a deep, wet, delicious kiss. Shu sucked hungrily on Eiri's tongue, savoring the taste of his mouth. Eiri did the same.

Eventually Eiri broke the kiss so he could suck on his lover's lower lip and give an occasional bite so as to bring moans from Shuichi.

Shu let his hands roam wherever he could reach on Eiri's sexy body; up over his broad chest and shoulders, around his hard biceps, across his lean stomach, and finally down over Eiri's hardened member. He grasped it with both hands, stroking it ever so gently.

Almost immediately, soft, alluring moans escaped Eiri's lips. Shu could swear on a million boxes of pocky that there never was - and never will be - a sexier sound in the world!

Not wanting the lusty sounds to stop, he quickened his pace and stroked faster. Harder. Eiri shifted a little so the front of his body wasn't being hit by the streams of water - that way Shu could use the pre-cum from Eiri's dick as lube to make his hands slide easier. The results were even better than he'd hoped for: not only did Eiri's moans become louder and needier, but he even began panting. His voice was heavily laden with arousal. "aaaaah...nnnggh...mmmmph...aaaaaah!!! ooooh Shu...aaah." Eiri leaned his head back and moaned even louder as he felt the pleasure in his groin increase rapidly.

Eiri was in another world. In his mind he could see all sorts of different colors flitter about him, each complimenting every new wave of sexual bliss that would start from his thighs, and ripple their way out through the rest of his body. He felt so weightless and free - gods how he loved this! He felt his orgasm come nearer, and put his hands on the wall above Shu's pink hair so he could steady himself - and not a moment too soon either. His orgasm blasted through, sending intense waves of pleasure that threatened to overwhelm him completely.

Shu looked up and saw Eiri throw his head back and give a loud cry of pure orgasmic pleasure. "AAAAAAH! OH, SHUICHIII!" His body went stiff for several moments as the powerful sensations continued to flow through him, and then slowly relaxed as the orgasm began to fade away.

Eiri let his head drop, panting for a moment before lifting it again. "And now it's your turn."

The blond reached behind him for a tube of newly purchased waterproof lube he kept on the shelf. Until last week, he'd never even heard of waterproof lube, that is, until his otouto Tatsuha introduced it to him (since when do the little bros introduce these kinds of things to the bigger bros?!). "Hey aniki, try this whenever you and Shu get down in the shower. It keeps its lube-like qualities - even in hot water - and it won't do anything shitty, like dissolve or get all liquidy... how do I know for sure? Well, heh heh, let's just say that my Ryu-baby and I have _put it to the test_ on occasion." Eiri suspected that the "on occasion" bit was actually code for "every other hour". What an ingenious invention by the way: waterproof lube. _Who would have guessed? I wonder who the genius behind it was?_

Using his skilled and nimble fingers, Eiri pushed some of the squishy substance into Shu's entrance. Eiri thoroughly enjoyed his little lover's moans, pants, and other reactions - both vocal and physical - to his proficient touches. Just hearing those sounds made even more blood go south.

Gently he inserted another finger. Every so often he'd purposely brush over Shu's sweet spot which made him involuntarily thrust into his hand. "Aaah! Yuki! Motto...motto...unnngh...hayaku...oooooh, yessssss! Oooh Yuki...please...come inside of me!"

Amused at Shu's impatience, Eiri pulled out his fingers and gripped the sides of Shu's butt cheeks, pulling him up at waist level. He wrapped his legs around Eiri's waist and shifted his ass up towards his lover's imploring dick.

He quickly thrust into him, making Shu gasp from the initial pain - pain that soon gave way to immense pleasure, as Eiri's thrusts occasionally rubbed on his prostate. "Aaah! Yuki! Oooooh...! Faster, Yuki! Harder!"

Eiri smirked, and complied fully with the pink-haired teen's simple requests.

Shuichi could feel it coming; that ultimate wave of pleasure that would make him feel like the king of the world! His pants and moans became more desperate now, and he grabbed onto Eiri's shoulders and dug his short nails into his skin. He was almost at his peak. Shu panted incessantly, waiting for the inevitable sensations which were building up inside of him like a volcano about to erupt. Suddenly he came. He let out a cry similar to the one Eiri had emitted just moments ago. Waves of deep pleasure washed over him like a waterfall, drowning him in sensual bliss. His seed splashed onto Eiri's stomach, only to be washed away by the downpour of the running shower.

Eiri had also come too, but Shu hadn't noticed, as he was already in another world from his own orgasm.

Gently, Eiri put Shu down so they could rest. Both panted from exhaustion, letting the concluding waves of their orgasms come and go.

After a few quiet minutes, Eiri wordlessly turned away and began to wash himself in the water.

Shuichi was surprised that Eiri was done so quickly, but decided it best not to ask him about it. Both had had a rough day, so it only made sense that they wouldn't be as energetic as usual. Shuichi spent the rest of the time silently washing himself, and so did Eiri.

Not one word was spoken until the shower turned off.

"Hey, Yuki?"

"Not now."

"What do you mean, 'not now'?"

Eiri dried himself off and tossed the towel at Shu's head. It landed smack on the singers face. Shuichi said nothing about it, but instead just used the towel to dry himself.

"I mean that I don't want to talk to you."

"But, why not?"

"Just shut up, okay? I don't feel like talking. That's all."

"How come the only times you're nice to me is when you want sex, or while we're actually engaged in it? Why can't you be nice to me at other times too? I mean, aren't people in a relationship _supposed_ to be nice to each other more often?

"I said shut up."

"Yuki...do you realize that there are actually people in this world who would _pay_ to spend a night with me? Or otherwise just spend time with me? Guys would want me even if I weren't rich and famous; they'd want me because I'm cute, and 'cause I know how to have a good time. In fact, if I were to walk into whatever bar or club, I'd have _no problem_ picking up any freakin' guy that catches my eye."

"Then why don't you?" The question was said more like a statement.

Shuichi blushed and looked up at him, his big violet eyes softening with emotion, "Because I love you, Yuki. I don't want to be with anyone else. Ever."

"Then don't be."

"But...I want you to be happy with me. I want you to love me the way I love you. I don't just want to be the only person you ever want to have sex with, but also the only person you want to spend your life with. Is that really difficult to do? Oh Yuki, I can't put into words all the things you mean to me...my only wish is that I could be all those things to you too and more. I love you deeply, Yuki. Very deeply. I can't even _describe_ how deeply."

Eiri sighed wearily, "Listen brat, I have work to do. If it'll make you happy, you can sleep in my bed tonight and I'll be by later. But," he with a stern glare at Shu, "Don't bother me anymore tonight."

With that, Eiri finished dressing and walked out of the bathroom and into his study, closing the door with slam.

Shuichi, still naked but dry, fell to his knees. _Is that all I am to you, Yuki? A bother?_ The thought made his eyes fill with tears.

**o---OoO---o**

It had been a while since Eiri's apartment was trashed. Since then, practically everything that came out of Shuichi's mouth when he spoke to Hiro was about how mean Eiri was being to him. "He won't say anything to me without yelling." "He kicks me out every other day." and so on. Even though poor Hiro was always the one on the receiving end of Shu's tears and complaints, his care for the singer never wavered. He _did_ come to resent Eiri Yuki even more than usual for his harsh treatment of his friend though, but as long the introverted writer never did anything too serious to the compliant singer, Hiro didn't feel the need to confront him. That is, until one Thursday.

On Thursday, Shuichi had come in to work late - just like he'd been doing for the past several days - only this time, he was exhibiting several thin scratch marks on his arms, and a large red mark covering half his face. Somehow K didn't seem to notice (or at least was pretending not to notice) - but Hiro did.

Shuich had no problem explaining the scratches. "Well, it started when I heard these weird sounds coming from the hallway outside the front door while I was getting ready to come to work. The noises were really strange, so I opened the door to investigate, and suddenly this HUGE white cat scampers in right between my legs, and hides itself between the couch and the wall. It - it was so scary! It was all hissing and growling, and I was afraid to get it out."

"But obviously you did, or at least tried too. Your arms are proof of that." Hiro said.

"Yeah, I _tried_. But..." His voice trailed off.

"So that explains your arms. Now what about your face?"

Shu cast his eyes down and swallowed hard.

"Shuichi...?"

"N-nothing. Okay?" Shu stuttered. "I - I - I tripped. No, I mean, I ran into the door, but that was _after_ I...tripped..."

"Shuichi," Hiro began calmly. "You don't get a mark shaped like _that_ by tripping, running into a door, or both. I think somebody hit you."

Shu's silence confirmed what he'd said.

"Who?" Hiro asked, already willing to bet anything it was a certain blond novelist.

Tears flooded Shu's eyes, "sob Oh Hiro, I - I didn't mean to let it in! Honest! sob Yuki came out of his study to see what all the noise was about, and h-he saw the cat and threw it outside, but, but it had already scratched a really big hole into the couch and when Yuki saw it, he sob, he yelled at me for being careless and all this other stuff about me always being nothing but nuisance and a burden and, and...sob"

"...he hit you?" Hiro finished.

Shuichi nodded weakly, still crying rivers. The yelling obviously hadn't thoroughly extinguished Eiri's anger, because before he turned to storm back into his study, he raised his hand and slapped Shuichi so quickly, the poor singer never saw it coming. All he felt was the sharp, stinging sensation explode on his face.

Anger brewed silently inside Hiro after hearing the story. Yelling at and kicking out the silly idiot was one thing, but actually _hitting_ him. No, this was the _last fucking straw_. Time to confront Eiri Yuki.

**o---OoO---o**

The very next day while Shuichi was still at work, Hiro decided to fulfill his promise to confront Eiri. Right now he was standing at the door to his apartment.

"...'Nakano', isn't it? So, what the hell do _you_ want?"

"I want to talk to you about Shuichi."

"Come back some other time, punk. I'm busy. Actually, just leave and _don't_ come back."

He tried to close the door, but Hiro put his foot in the way.

"I'm serious. I want to talk to you about Shuichi."

"What's there to say?"

A feeling of rage flashed through the normally tranquil and composed guitarist. "You fucking, goddamned bastard! Screw you! Don't you even realize how your treatment of Shuichi is affecting him? It's tearing him apart! He can't think straight anymore; all he can think about is you! You, you, you!! 'What did I do to hurt him?' 'How can I be less of a bother to him?' 'Does he love me anymore?' DON'T YOU FUCKING CARE ABOUT HIM ANYMORE?!?! AND WHERE IN THE FREAKIN' HELL DO YOU GET OFF _HITTING_ HIM????!!!!"

"That moron is too sensitive for his own good." Eiri said, exceedingly irritated. Today hadn't gone well and neither had the day before. First, he'd woken up with a splitting headache, and it didn't help that his lover is as quiet as a speeding freight train. Second, some fucking neko the size of a stereo just moseys its way into _his_ home and ruins _his_ furniture. He hadn't actually meant to _hit_ the baka, it just happened - almost involuntarily. He'd turned away before he could see the look on his lover's face. But if he hadn't, he knew he probably would've broken down right then and there from remorse. Still, he shouldn't have to deal with it anymore - it happened _yesterday_ for god's sake, and the moron never said a word to him about it - so why should he have to deal with one of his little friends _now_?

"If it bothers you so much, than don't let him into your home at 2am to cry all over your shoulder. Let him sleep outside for once. That should clear his head."

Hiro wanted soooo badly to pound Eiri into a pulp the size of a basketball, but it took all of his self control to keep from doing it.

"Eiri Yuki-san," he said through clenched teeth, "The last time you kicked him out, he...wrote about how he felt. He hadn't intended for me to find the paper, but I did. It's...it's in the form of song lyrics. Read them and _then_ try telling me that there's nothing to say."

He thrust the paper into Eiri's hands. The writer took it and just crumpled it into his pocket.

"When I have time. Why don't you just go back to work. The last thing I need is that damn American coming around here while looking for you."

Hiro was speechless. Is _this_ what Shuichi has to put up with everyday?! How in the freakin' hell of hells does he do it??? After a moment his shoulders sagged, and he removed his foot from the doorway, accepting defeat - for now at least. The door slammed shut. Eiri returned to his office, forgetting about the paper in his pocket, or that Hiro had even visited for that matter.

**o---OoO---o**

It had been a full month since Eiri's apartment had been trashed. Not another word from his stalker had been heard since then. Already the incident was passing from his mind.

Unfortunately, the situation regarding Shu and Eiri's relationship was getting worse. Fights were becoming more frequent, and a day didn't go by without Eiri working out his vocal cords from yelling, or Shuichi losing half his body's water through his eyes. Ever since the day Eiri hit him, Shu had developed a fear of Eiri's hands, and would avoid them like the plague whenever the writer was pissed off. Eiri had noticed that and began to regret hitting him even more every time he saw his lover cringe in fear anytime he got within arms length during a fight. _Am I really such an asshole?_ Eiri would think. Even still, he didn't apologize.

Since Eiri still wouldn't show him any kindness, except during sex (or when he was wanting it), Shu began to feel like he was only being used for his body. Sure, it felt good to have this drop-dead-gorgeous man give him the best sex of is life nearly every night, but it _didn't_ feel good being ignored by him anytime they weren't in bed.

Often times Shu would try to make things better by attempting to brighten Eiri's day a little. He never tried cooking again, as he already knew Eiri would never sample any of his cooking after his previous attempt, but he did try other things; running errands, doing housework, and he even tried doing the laundry.

Unfortunately, it seemed that none of those things would work. Something would always go wrong. He'd screw up on the errands, causing Eiri to have to go in person to fix them. With housework sometimes he'd just end up breaking something, or otherwise making a mess - something Eiri again would have to personally fix. And don't even get me started with the laundry! He didn't have much experience in using a machine or measuring detergents, so instead of keeping Eiri's whites white, he turned them a strange combination of yellow, pink, and blue. Not only that, but he put certain things into the drier that weren't supposed to go in. The results: shrunken shirts, irreversible twisted designer jeans, and more. Something Eiri again had to fix by buying new clothes to replace the ones Shu had ruined.

Each time Shuichi screwed up in his efforts to make Eiri happy, Eiri would yell at him, kick him out of the house, or sometimes just outright ignore him. He never seemed to register the fact that the inexperienced little teen was only trying to help him.

Finally, Shu settled on one thing and one thing only - the one thing that he knew the irate novelist would appreciate - something he couldn't possibly screw up: not bugging him while he's working.

Well, it worked - sort of anyway. While it did make Eiri a little less irritable during the day, he still didn't treat Shu any nicer.

**o---OoO---o**

"Well," Hiro said thoughtfully after listening to his amethyst-eyed friend bitch and moan about all the events from the past month, "Sounds to me like your lover just needs a little reminder of the fact that you love him. Something he can't possibly ignore." _Something that won't piss him off_, he thought dryly.

"But I've tried EVERYTHING! I even tried not bothering him while he's working - not a peep from me for all those hours he spends in his stupid office typing on that stupid laptop for his stupid novel! WHY HIRO?! WHY WON'T HE BE NICER TO ME?! WHAT AM I DOING WRONG??!!" He hid his face in his hands and cried even harder.

Hiro sighed. He was glad that they were at his apartment where they at least had some privacy and not some cafe out in the public where curious onlookers could witness this spectacle. _Sheesh, I wonder what all our fan-girls and -boys would think of the great Shuichi Shindou if they saw him like this?_

Still, Hiro felt sorry for him. The poor singer had been put through so much abuse lately it was a wonder he even decided to get out of bed in the morning. _He probably doesn't even sleep on the bed. That damned Eiri probably makes him sleep on the floor._ Hiro came to a decision: this time instead of doing the usual comforting-Shuichi routine, he'd do something a little different.

"Hey, Shuichi,"

Shu looked up, sniffling back sobs. "Y-yeah?"

"Do you love Yuki-san?"

Shuichi suddenly stopped crying and starred up in shock and surprise at his best friend. _Why the _hell _is he asking me a stupid question like that?_As if he'd forgotten everything Eiri had put him through. _Of course I love Yuki!_

"Now wait. Before you answer that, I want you too really, _really_ think about it. Do you honestly, truly love Eiri Yuki?"

Shu had been about to answer, but stopped short. _Did_ he love Yuki? _Really_ love him? Thoughts of the all the abuse he'd been put through for the past month, and all the months before then flashed before his eyes. I mean sure, Eiri was cold by nature, so behavior of that sort was normal from him...but did he really love him? Did Eiri even love him in return? Eiri never did anything to make him happy except have sex with him - but did so only because _he_ himself _wanted_ too - not because Shu wanted it (even though he thoroughly enjoyed it just as much as Eiri did, if not more). _No, maybe Yuki only loves my body, maybe that's why he's only nice to me during sex. If he truly loved me, _me_, than he'd at least show some occasional appreciation. Maybe I'm just stuck in this delusion that he loves me. Maybe _that's _why I love him._

Shu felt his tears returning, and then froze. _Wait a damn minute...Yuki DOES love me - and I have proof! If he didn't love me, than he wouldn't have tolerating me those first few days we met. If he didn't love me, than he wouldn't have stood up for me (much less kept me) after I humiliated him in front of his father back when I impersonated Ayaka. If he didn't love me, he wouldn't have let me move in with him, much less sleep in his bed on occasion. If he didn't love me, he wouldn't constantly defend me whenever Tohma or Mika tries to convince him to get rid of me. IF HE DIDN'T LOVE ME, THEN HE'D TELL ME SO!!! And so far, even though he's never actually _said _that he loves me; he's never actually told he hates me either. Conclusion: YUKI LOVES ME!!! THEREFORE, I LOVE HIM TOO!!!_

"Yes. I do love Eiri Yuki. And with all my heart too!"

Hiro looked unimpressed. "Why?"

Shu excitedly went on to narrate his previous thoughts and conclusion - leaving nothing out.

Hiro still looked unimpressed. _You idiot_. "I suppose that _could_ mean something, but...why don't we put your lover to the test?"

Shu cocked his head sideways, clearly not getting it.

Hiro sighed, "What I mean is, why don't you hang out here for a few days and see if he misses you? See if he even bothers to call and find out where you are, or if you're okay. If he does call, just tell him that you're fine but don't feel like going home for a while - and explain why. If he really does love you, than that should be just the kick he needs to get him to show it more."

Shu's eyes went wide, "Hiro," he said in disbelief, "Who knew you could be so devious. hmph. No _way_! No way josé, nuh uh, nope. I am _not_ gonna subject my Yuki to something as ridiculously silly as that."

_What? Your presence already fit the bill?_ Hiro was really tempted on saying that, but refrained from doing so. He was surprised at his own sarcasm. "Why not? Afraid it won't work?"

"No, that's not what I mean, what I meant was -"

_**BRRIIIIIIIIIING!!!**_

Shu's cell phone interrupted his sentence.

"Hello, Shindou here...HE'S WHAT?!?! Oh god...okay, I'll be right there!...no, no need - I'm within walking distance...yes, thanks for calling."

"What happened?"

Shu jumped up and ran towards the door, a look of urgency painted on his face, "Yuki's in the hospital. Something bad happened to him. I have to go see him!"

The fear and panic in his voice, plus the shock of what he said made Hiro suddenly feel guilty for his earlier suggestion. "Here, let me give you a ride. It'll save you time and-"

"No. You've already done enough to help me; I can't bother you anymore today." The door slammed shut, and Hiro listened to the sounds of his friend's running footsteps fade into the distance. He wanted to follow after to accompany him anyway, but decided not to. He'll probably want to be alone with Eiri, and my presence wouldn't really allow that. _What could have happened to Yuki that would cause him to end up in the hospital?_ He knew of Eiri's tendency to speed so he immediately thought _car accident_, but realized that any number of things could land a person in the hospital. He sighed, _For your sake, Shuichi, I hope he's okay._

**END EPISODE 4**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": Eiri in the hospital?! What happened to him??? Hopefully he isn't hurt too badly...but what if he is? How will the people closest to him deal with it?? Plus, we might even gain more insight to who the mysterious '24' is. Until next time!)

**Author's Notes:** whew! This is my longest chapter yet, and I'm so glad it's finally finished! yay! Happy dance time! Okay time to start typing again. Anyways, this chapter was hard for me, because I had to describe in detail just how mean Eiri was being to poor little Shu. You see, in my original draft, I never intended it to get this bad, but somehow it just ended up that way :-/. I don't think I'll ever write another story where Eiri is this mean because it's just too damn depressing. But don't worry; everything will turn out okay in the end - I swear! btw, part of my fanfic-writing creed states that I'll never write a story with a sad/unsatisfactory/or otherwise bad ending, so you can rest assured that a very happy ending awaits you when this is all over!

**Japanese Words Used:**  
Otouto – Younger brother –   
Aniki – Older brother  
Motto - More  
Hayaku - Faster   
Neko – Cat


	5. Attack! It's a hospital!

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 5: Attack! It's a hospital! Top Five Assembled**

Three hours earlier

Silence was the only sound you'd hear if you happened to walk into Eiri Yuki's office right now. Hours had passed since the lattering of laptop keys filled the room. The reason? Eiri had writers block - and a serious case at that. For the past two weeks he simply couldn't force any feasible ideas out of his mind. Sighing, he laid back in his desk chair and stared into space - his arms imp at his sides.

During the past few weeks Eiri noticed a drastic reduction in interruptions that his pink-haired lover would make while he was working. Although grateful for the peace and quiet - which was a heavy requirement for writing a best selling novel - Eiri wondered if his recent colder behavior towards Shuichi was responsible for the fact that the teen now steered clear of him whenever possible, especially when he thought Eiri was angry. A flashback of memory conjured up the images of him slapping the poor kid. The look of shock, fear, and hurt, which poured from the boy's expressive eyes, were burned into Eiri's memory.

He shook his head from the thought. It was over. Done with. Finished. Allowing thoughts of regret to fill his mind would not change the fact that he _had_ done it. All it would do is take away years – not to mention keep him from having a clear enough head to write.

He let out one frustrated sigh, and then another. _Maybe a walk in the park will help clear my head, and possibly even spark some ideas for my novel._ So that's where he decided to go.

Eiri stepped out of his office. The spacious apartment was absolutely silent. _So it appears the baka isn't home yet._ He felt only mildly disappointed. Actually, Eiri had grown accustomed to – and was almost beginning to like - being pounced on and having his ear talked off by the little singer whenever he'd step out to take a break. _I wonder where he is. Oh, who the fuck cares. Like I need to be bothered right now anyway._

The forecast had predicted cloudy skies with temperatures in the low 60's for tonight, so Eiri grabbed a coat before leaving.

**o---OoO---o**

So far the leisurely walk through the lush, sparsely populated park was everything Eiri had expected it to be: refreshing, peaceful, and mind-clearing. That is, everything except _chilly_. The tempurature turned out to be quite warm. _Fucking meteorologists_ Eiri thought, not too happy about having to carry his coat instead of wearing it. _No - just fucking scientists in general. How long will it take before everyone learns that these people just can't _predict _things?_

As he walked, Eiri breathed deeply and let his senses absorb the scenery; leaves rustling slightly in the breeze, song birds chirping pleasantly at the tops of branches - seemingly without a care in the world, Little squirrels running rapidly across the pathway, some grasping nuts close to their tiny chests, heading back towards their respective trees to store them for winter. Everything out here just seemed so... so perfect, so... normal, so... full of life, and without the cares of the modernized world.

He heard faint laughter and conversation taking place from a family picnicking several yards away; the happy social sounds conjured up the brief nostalgic memories of himself and his family back when he was very young and closer to them, back when he'd talk and laugh with them like families are supposed to.

He pushed the thought from his mind almost as soon as it entered. Those days were over and were never coming back. No need to remember them. It wouldn't help anything. It wouldn't. It couldn't. Nothing could ever bring his family back together like they had been all those years ago. Eiri sighed.

As he was passing by one of the many large oak trees that grew in the area, Eiri heard a soft pop come from behind him. Whatever it was had scared the birds, because they suddenly flew frantically from the tree.

Another pop sounded. But before he could turn around to find the source of it, Eiri saw something fall from the sky and land at his feet. He looked down, and saw a bird - a dead bird - with a small red splotch on its chest...

Before his mind had a chance to process what had happened to the bird, Eiri heard a twig snap behind him, and something hard and heavy smash down on the back of his head.

Without even getting to see stars, Eiri Yuki collapsed to the ground - unconscious.

**o---OoO---o**

Swirling colors seemed to float in and out of nowhere. An odd mix of colors. Then shapes began to form. At first the shapes were simple circles or squares, but soon began to stretch and skew into more complex shapes. A tunnel started to form. This tunnel seemed to enclose all the shapes and colors and turn them black. From the very end of this tunnel, a tiny pinpoint of light appeared. Eiri didn't know why, but he felt a non-ignorable desire to reach that light - to touch it. Slowly, painfully, he tried to walk towards the light, but his limbs felt stiff - as if they were partially paralyzed. Another pinpoint of light appeared, and another, and another. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his side, and his entire vision exploded in a flash of bright light. _What...the...hell...is wrong...with me? help...me..._

Another sharp pain on his body finally awoke him completely.

Eiri opened his eyes and found himself in a huge, dimly lit building surrounded by numerous boxes of seemingly random sizes, all stacked haphazardly against the wall. This was...a warehouse? He tried to shift his position get a better look, but found that he was bound from head to toe with a thick rope. A tall shadow on his right suddenly caught his eye. He looked towards it only to see a thug standing over him. This guy was quite short, but more than made up for his lack of height with large muscles in his chest and arms. A buzzed hair cut topped his roundish face. The man had his right leg poised slightly behind his left, so Eiri figured that the pain he'd awoken to was from this guy kicking him.

Another thug was here as well. Unlike the first, this one was tall, lanky, and appeared malnourished. He was only a few feet away, leaning against a barrel with his arms crossed and head slightly cocked. He was staring at Eiri curiously.

Eiri tried to speak, but found that he had been gagged as well as tied up. _What the hell was going on here?_

The short thug bent slightly over Eiri and peered down at his face. "Hey Aki, seems he's 'wake now."

"Oh, you don't say." Said the tall thug, Aki, with a sarcastic tone. "I had no idea open eyes meant that the person was awake." He turned his attention back towards Eiri. "So, you're the famous Mary Yuki eh?"

"No you idiot! It's _Eiri_ Yuki!"

"Personally, I couldn't care less what his name really is. 'Mary' was close enough anyways. Now, _Eiri_ - as my friend so persistently wants me to call you -"

"Hey! I only said it once!"

"Jiro just shut up will you? I've got a job too, and I don't need you disrupting me. Now, where was I?" he turned back to Eiri. "As you now know, my name is Aki. The big-muscled idiot next to you is my partner Jiro. We were hired to do a service by an individual going by the name '24'. He claims that you are familiar with the name. Anyway, _my_ job is to deliver a message to you." Aki cleared his throat. "The message is, 'Choose your gold'. Now, I don't know what the hell that means, and don't really care. We're getting paid good money for this job, so undue curiosity on my part isn't necessary as far as I'm concerned." He now gestured to his partner. "As for him, Jiro's job is a little more exciting. He gets to rough you up a little so as to keep you from forgetting the message too quickly. Jiro was paid quite a sum for this, so he will pay exceptionally more attention to you than usual."

Aki smiled wickedly, "You may begin now, Jiro."

The shorter thug rubbed his hands together gleefully and grinned menacingly at Eiri, revealing several missing, oddly shaped, and oddly colored teeth.

He took a step closer towards Eiri who could do nothing but stare up at him, helpless where he lay bound at his feet. Jiro lifted his foot far back, and then slammed it into Eiri's stomach. Eiri's body exploded with pain from the unexpectedly hard kick; not only was this Jiro a helluva lot stronger than he looked, but he was wearing steel-toe boots. Eiri gasped and involuntarily folded in half at the pain, but Jiro would have none of that. He made a gesture towards Aki. The tall thug moved in behind Eiri and propped him up. He linked their arms together which restricted any movements on Eiri's part.

Kick after kick came. Eiri struggled desperately against his bonds, but whoever had tied him was obviously very expierenced with rope. The fact that Aki was holding him in place didn't help either. For the second time in his life, Eiri Yuki felt absolutely helpless. Unable to break free. Brief memories of his struggle with Kitazawa during the attempted rape flashed through his mind. He'd felt helpless then. Helpless and scared and confused. But he'd had access to a gun at that time, and unfortunately, the possibility of getting his hands on one now was zero.

Suddenly a sickening crack came from a well aimed kick to Eiri's ribs, and lightning flashed in his vision. Near unbearable pain ripped through his body along with waves of nausea. Eiri gave a muffled cry from his gag. Growing circles of darkness clouded his eyes. A smirk played across the muscular man's face when he realized that he had just broken some of Eiri's ribs.

Eiri felt the world begin to fade away...

SPLASH!

He was suddenly jerked back into awareness. Though his vision was blurry, he could see drops of water falling from his bangs, and looked up to see Jiro holding an empty bucket. Puddles of ice cold water surrounded around him.

"No! No! No! I will have _none_ of this fainting shit. You're gonna stay awake for me!"

Aki growled up at his partner. "Damn it asshole! You didn't have to wet ME too!"

Jiro ignored him. He was having too much fun to care about anything Aki said now.

Eiri was now trembling from pain and the cold water, and Jiro motioned for Aki to release his hold on Eiri. "You coulda had me to do that BEFORE you -"

"Oh, quit your bitchin'! Go dry off in the sun or somethin'. I'm almost done anyways."

Grumbling, Aki sat down on a nearby storage drum which was bathed in sunlight streaming through one of the few window. He would have just gone outside to let the hot sun dry him, but he had a sadistic nature that wouldn't allow him to miss seeing the rest of Eiri's torture.

Jiro crossed his arms and looked down at the writhing novelist before him. _Hey,_ he thought _this guy is actually pretty hot. Too bad the job description didn't include fucking him._

After a moment of thought, he decided that he was done kicking him, and went on to hit in other places. Well placed punches to his face, and chest, and various other places made his victim cry out in pain, not to mention leave huge bruises.

Only after Eiri was thoroughly beaten and bleeding did Jiro decide that his job was finished. Giving one last glance at his handy-work, he decided on the finishing move – a solid kick in the groin.

It was the last thing Eiri felt before he finally passed out.

**o---OoO---o**

Darkness. That's all Eiri Yuki could see right now.

Slowly, ever so slowly, as his consciousness came back to him, he could see faint red images move around in his vision. _Huh? What's going on?_ His foggy mind thought. With the images came sounds. The sounds were soft and business-like in a way. _Did I die?_ Eiri wondered while struggling to open his eyes, but the effort felt almost too much to bother with. Even still, he forced his eyes to open - even though it was only as slits. Bright white light invaded his vision and he quickly shut them. Everything was white. Was this heaven? Did those bastards actually _kill_ him?

He forced open his eyes again after he felt a little more adjusted to the light. A lovely face in a crisp white hat was peering down at him. "Oh good! You're awake! Konnichi wa Eiri Yuki-sama, for a while there we thought we'd lost you. What a tragedy it could be if the best romance novelist in Japan were to die before finishing his next book! Oh by the way, you wouldn't mind signing one for me - that is, once you've recovered of course? Onegaaaaai?"

_Oh give me a freakin' break... even the angels are...?_

"Chiyo-san, please leave the patient alone. He needs to rest or he will never recover."

The new voice came from a face which just appeared over Eiri. "Uesugi-san, please excuse the nurse. She is new and still needs to learn how to properly treat patients." He said this cheerfully, but directed those last words towards the blushing nurse. "By the way, my name is Dr. Takahashi. Your condition was just recently brought down from critical, but you will still need several days of non-stop rest."

_Nope - I'm not dead or in heaven. Just in a damn hospital._ "D-doc...tor" Despite the fact that his mind was now quite active, he couldn't control his movements very well, and his mouth felt numb, "what...is wrong...with...me?"

"sigh The most severe damage was done in your chest - three fractured ribs and internal bleeding around that area. You also have over 30 major bruises on various parts of your body and some minor cuts and scrapes on your face and wrists. The bruises and scrapes are purely superficial and will fade with time. As for the ribs, they will also heal, but it will take at _least_ two months - four tops. What I'm more concerned with is the internal bleeding. Although it has stopped..." He paused wondering if he should continue, but Eiri gave him a warning look that told him to go on. "Although it has stopped, there is a chance of infection. In which case, you may need surgery to have the infection cleaned. But with luck, your system will wash away the blood and you will continue to heal. You are quite lucky, Uesugi-san. A weaker man wouldn't have walked away from injuries of this degree alive."

Eiri closed his eyes to let it all sink in. Flashbacks of the attack plagued his mind.

"And... the numbness?"

"The numbness you feel is due to anesthetics. They seem to be wearing off a bit, and you'll want to take another dose in about an hour. You would be in a lot of pain right now if it weren't for them."

"Who found me?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't have that information. After you rest some more, there is a police officer who would like to take a report from you. He can tell you how you were found among other things. Now speaking of rest, I suggest that you go back to sleep."

"You haven't...called...my family...have you?"

"_I_ didn't, but the officer in charge of your case did. He said that he found your cell phone in your pocket and went through the directory for names and numbers."

Eiri thought about asking just who the officer had called, but felt too tired to do so. All that ran through his mind was how miserable he felt...and how much he did _not_ want to see or hear that annoying Tohma.

"Doctor, I don't want...any visitors. No matter...what they...say. No...visitors." He fell asleep.

**o---OoO---o**

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN'T SEE MY YUKI?!?!?!"

Dr. Takahashi nearly had the skeleton shaken out of him by some little pink-haired teenager who had just burst through the entrance of the hospital, asking - no, _demanding_ - to see Eiri Yuki, only to be told by the polite doctor that he wasn't able to take visitors at the moment. The kid was in such a nervous wreck that he'd grabbed the doctor by the shoulders and started shaking him. "I-I'm sorry, sir, but Uesugi-san specifically said that he didn't want any visitors-"

Shuichi interrupted, "BUT I'M HIS -"

The doctor interrupted back, firmly removing Shuichi's hands, "No matter _what_ they said. If you really want to see him, you'll have to wait in the visitors lounge until he decides to see you all."

You _all_? Shu's silent question was answered when he walked into the lounge and saw the "all" the doctor was referring too: Mika, Tatsuha, Mizuki, and of course, Tohma. Everyone was sitting down except for Mika, who paced the floor like there was no tomorrow, worry etched in her brow. Her brother, husband, and her other brother's editor looked equally worried. When the doors opened and Shuichi walked in, everybody looked up expectedly, only to groan in frustration when he obviously wasn't the person they were hoping to see.

"I should have known you'd show up." Mika muttered.

"I told you he would." Tatsuha added

"I would have been surprised if he didn't." Tohma said.

"So, he wouldn't even see _you_?" Mizuki asked

Shuichi sighed and sat down heavily on a chair and faced the ground. "No... the doctor said that Yuki wouldn't see anyone no matter who they were."

"He could have at _least_ let Tatsuha or myself see him, I mean, we _are_ his siblings," Mika said with an indignant huff.

"Don't be silly, sis. You're the _last_ person he'd want to see while in that condition. No, check that; _Tohma_-san is the last person on his "to see list"." He chuckled, "And you too, Mizuki-san!"

Tohma glared at the raven-haired teen but said nothing. Mizuki merely shrugged in agreement.

"But I wonder why he wouldn't see Shuichi-kun? Aren't you two practically married?"

This time Tohma spoke up, "Tatsuha-kun, if you'd spend more time around others besides Ryuichi-kun, you'd have heard the rumors and gossip flying around about those two. Apparently, they aren't as close as you thought they were. Aren't I right, Shindou-kun?" He raised an eyebrow in Shu's direction, malicious jealousy dripping from his piercing sapphire eyes.

Shuichi bit his lip and cast his eyes down, "Well, yes it's true that we've gotten into more disagreements than usual, and he speaks less to me now, but..."

"That's putting it lightly, Shindou-kun." Tohma said. He would've liked to have said more as he deeply enjoyed wounding him, but decided to drop the subject. Otherwise, one of the others might say something. "Change of subject now. Do you at least know what happened to him?"

Shuichi shrugged, "All I know is that he's here. I don't know what could possibly be wrong with him."

"Who called you?"

"Some cop. I think his name was... Nobu-san?"

"And? What did he say?"

"Just that he had found Yuki hurt, and was calling everyone at the top of Yuki's cell-phone's directory to let them know."

A thought occurred to Tatsuha, "Hey, Eiri's phone is one of those older models, right? You know how much he hates learning how to use the newer types. Anyway, his model only allows five spaces in the top of the directory - the five numbers that are he calls the most often – or that call _him_ the most often. This Nobu guy called each of us. Does that mean we are all at the top of his list? I wonder which of us was in slot number one???" He stroked his chin in mock concentration while eyeing each person in the room.

"Tatsuha!" Mika scolded sharply, "This is no time to be joking around like that while Eiri might possibly be dying!"

"Geez, Miks, he's our brother. Be a little more optimistic about him will ya?"

Tohma straightened in his chair, "No, I agree with Mika-san. This is no time to be fooling around. If Eiri-san weren't hurt too badly, than there would be no need to alert family and friends. The fact that we were alerted - and by a police officer at that - means that something serious happened. We need to stay calm and focused if we are to be any help to him at all."

"...Tohma, you might think you know my aniki so well - but you don't. Truth is, I'm sick of all your shit about how much you care about him and yada yada yada. The only ones who know him at all are myself, Mika, and possibly Shu-kun. So just shut your ass will you? And don't even think about telling me to speak to you with respect, because I don't give a damn. I know the only reason you married my aneki is so you could be closer to _him_. Unfaithful bastard. You shouldn't even be here. You should be at work, and let the _family_ take care of their own." Tatsuha glared defiantly at Tohma, daring him to counter his speech.

The ever graceful blond calmly stood up, walked towards Tatsuha staring at him in the eyes for a few seconds, then swiftly slapped him hard across the face. Tatsuha reflexively touched his cheek, and stared blankly at the older man. "You're right, Tatsuha-kun. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't care about the well-being of my brother-in-law, not if it disturbs the life of his little sibling." He spoke with unfiltered loathing. Turning on his heels, he stalked out of the room.

Mika looked her brother disapprovingly, but didn't scold him. The slap was enough punishment.

Mizuki shifted uneasily in her chair, embarrassed at having to watch the family squabble like that.

Tatsuha regained his composure and went to sit next to Shuichi. "So, Shu-kun, what did you think of my little display? I doubt Mr. NG president will be coming back anytime soon. Besides, Eiri's gonna thank me."

Shuichi stared at him in astonishment. Mika also looked a little surprised. Then he said, "You mean...that was all...an _act_?! You sure fooled me! Maybe you should become an actor or something. I hear Hollywood could use a few good ones."

Nobody said anything after that. There was just nothing to say. Nobody had any more information than the other, and there just weren't any conversational topics suitable for the moment.

Hours passed. Still no word from Eiri's doctor.

Finally at around midnight, the door creaked open and the middle-aged man walked in.

"Oh! Mr. Takahashi, any word about Yuki?"

"Yes. He said that he'll take visitors now, but you'll need to be quiet, as most of the other patents are asleep.

**o---OoO---o**

Eiri had actually woken up three hours ago, but hadn't been in the mood for visitors at the time. All he wanted to do was think. The fact that he was laying helpless in a hospital bed with nowhere to go had actually given him a reason to do so.

He thought about his attackers and what they did to him. He thought about _why_ they had attacked him, and then thought about the fucking message they'd given. What the hell was it with the gold again? Was it some kind of cryptic message from a psycho fangirl or fan_boy_? Choose your gold... but for what reason would even a _psycho_ fan-person want him hurt? And why would they want him to quit his career? It just didn't make sense. Obviously someone was out to get him... but who?

He thought about any enemies he might have. Someone with a motive - a reason - to want him hurt. Suddenly he thought of Kitazawa. Maybe it was somebody in his family out for revenge? He had killed the man - that was reason enough for a family member to want revenge... but he didn't know enough about his family to be certain though. So far, the only living member of Yuki Kitazawa's family that he knew of was Yoshiki Kitazawa, Yuki's younger brother. But when they'd met, Eiri got the distinct impression that he - err _she_ - was incapable of ever having a bitter bone in his... _her_ body. Maybe "24" was some lunatic ex lover, or possibly even a rival of some kind. No names came to mind though.

He decided to turn on the TV just to hear some noise. A news channel was showing, but nothing interesting was going on. There was stuff about newly recovered jewels from a robbery that had occurred two months ago, and some stupid lawsuit that was still in progress by some equally stupid tourist who didn't even know that sushi was raw - could people really be that idiotic? Plus some screwed up teenagers giving speeches about how dressing normally to school would help them study better. Lastly was an update on some nut who'd escaped from an asylum several months ago - apparently a dangerous nut - who was still at large, and if anyone had any information whatsoever to call this number. They showed his picture in a small square next to the newscastor's head - a slender face topped with black, neck-length hair, and a half-moon scar was on his left shoulder. "...also about six feet tall..." droned the newscastor. "...alias's include..." But Eiri switched off the TV. He sighed, _just the usual_.

Next Eiri thought about all the other incidents that had happened up to now. How much his life had changed. Ever since his apartment was trashed, he had became paranoid: constantly checking that the doors and windows were locked, making sure Shuichi never lost or lent his key to anyone, always staying in public areas when he went outside, not answering phone calls from unidentified numbers, and the list went on.

It was also affecting his love life. Shuichi seemed to have gotten over being accused of vandalizing his house, but he still appeared hurt by the slap he'd received. Eiri had never physically hurt him before. Since then he noticed that Shu seemed to avoid him more. He began spending more and more time over at his friend Hiro's place. And even when he was with Eiri, he always acted extra careful, as if afraid of provoking him even more.

_Damn it. What am I doing? The one person besides that fucking Tohma who loves me unconditionally, and who never leaves my side no matter how terrible I am to him, is slowly leaving me. No - I can't let that happen! Shuichi Shindou, that little brat with the hot voice and even hotter body, with those phenomenal amethyst eyes that make my heart melt every time I see them shine with happiness or fill with tears, and that mop of hair that is naturally an unnatural color... is MINE. I will NOT lose him - Shuichi Shindou is MINE. I - I _love _him. I know I do. And not just for his body, but for him. I can't explain it, but I feel like that missing section of my heart is filled whenever he's around me. How could I have taken him for granted? Damn it - I've never shown any appreciation for him, especially during these past two months. Even though he tries to hide it, I can still see the sorrow in his eyes. He must think I hate him._ Eiri came to a decision.

"Doctor... are there any visitors here for me?"

**o---OoO---o**

Eiri turned his head to get a better view of the door when it opened. In walked everybody he had expected to see - that is, everyone except Tohma. _Note to self: remember to thank whoever kept Tohma from coming._

"Oh, Yuki! How are you feeling? What happened? Did someone do this to you? Do you know who they are? Are-"

"Argh!... oww... no more questions... kusou gaki."

Shuichi shut his mouth with an audible snap and moved aside to let his family see him.

Mika took her brother's hand in hers and held it tight, "There's no need to say anything right now. What you need is plenty of rest. Just do whatever the doctor tells you to do."

Tatsuha rolled his eyes. "I think Eiri already knows that. Anyway, I'm glad you're okay bro. You had us kinda worried there for a while, but I knew you'd pull through. Oh, and I got rid of Tohma-san for you! Hence his non-presence." He winked.

Just a hint of a smirk appeared on Eiri's face, but it left when he noticed his editor, "Even being... on the brink of death... isn't excuse enough... for missing a deadline... eh?"

Everyone chuckled.

"Oh no, Yuki-san. I'm only present because I was told that you were here. I just came to make sure you were alright." She looked around at his family, "And now that I've completed my task I'll be going now so as to not inconvenience you any longer. Konban wa, and take care." As she left the room though, she called back over her shoulder "But don't think _I've_ forgotten your deadline."

Just then the doctor came in. "Alright now. I'm sorry, but you're visiting time is up. You will have to leave and come back tomorrow during regular visiting hours - providing that the patient is willing to see you..." he glanced at Eiri for confirmation, and he nodded.

"Well then, I'll escort you out."

Mika gave his hand one more squeeze before letting it go.

Tatsuha waved.

Shuichi also waved. His face shrouded in worry. He was about to leave with the family when Eiri motioned him back.

"Doc... I want to talk with him... a bit longer. But not the others."

The doctor thought it over for a second. "Alright. But just a few minutes longer." He closed the door behind him. Now Shuichi was alone with Eiri.

Shu walked closer to the bed and held the same hand Mika had just seconds earlier. "I'm sorry I bombarded you with all those questions earlier... I was just so worried about you - nobody told us what had happened - and I was just so happy to see you, and-"

"Shut... up. I'll tell you about what happened... after I recover. For now though... go home and sleep... and don't wreck my place. I want it in the same condition... that I left it in. Also... don't worry about me. I'm fine now." He ever so lightly squeezed Shu's hand and gave him just a hint of a smile. But that gesture of love, no matter how small, was enough to send Shu's heart flying at mach one speed.

"Oh, Yuki! I love you so much! Don't you worry about a thing: you're place will remain in tip top shape for your return. And, as a bonus: I'll have something _delicious_ waiting for you at home!" he giggled mischievously and his eyes twinkled.

"Burn down my kitchen... and I'll kill you."

"Oh, you can't eat it. But you'll wish you were able to! Bye Yuki! Aishiteru! Take care and remember to do what Mika-san said, and-"

"I get it brat... go home already."

He smiled as soon as his little strawberry-haired baka left the room. _As soon as I get home, I'll tell him what he really means to me. And, I'll also apologize for making his life miserable. I'll be a little nicer to him, and spend more time with him - and not just more time making love, no, more time just _talking_. More time making love isn't such a bad idea either. Oh god - I just love him! By the way... I wonder what he's got planned for me..._

**END EPISODE 5**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": Eiri is recovering nicely, but something happens that makes his attack seem like nothing. It all starts when he receives a very disturbing letter from: guess who. What does this letter say? All I can say for now, is that it deals with someone Eiri holds very dear to his heart... all this and more in Episode 6!)

**Author's Notes: **Yes I know: the attack on Eiri was absolutely brutal - but necessary for my plan to put him in the hospital. You see, Eiri doesn't strike me as a person who is easy to put into one, so I had to come up with a way to do so - and found that only something as violent as that attack would do the trick. Don't worry though; I will never EVER permanently kill off any of the characters - so there's no need to worry about Eiri being killed or whatnot. I just thought I'd let you know that :-)

**Japanese Words Used:**  
Konnichi wa - hello  
Onegai - please  
Kusou gaki - damn brat  
Konban wa - good evening   
Aishiteru - I love you

**Notes to my Reviewers:**

Hello! Thanks for staying with me. I'm proud to say that I'm about half way done with the story now!!! Thanks soooo much for all the reviews you've given me so far... and even if you haven't given a review, thanks for just reading my story - I really hope you enjoy it.


	6. Where's Shu?

**oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 6: Where's Shu?**

Two weeks later

Eiri was recovering swiftly; already his cuts were pretty much healed, and most of the bruises had vanished. His ribs were still broken though, but weren't hurting nearly as much as they had been just a few days earlier.

Even though it had only been two weeks, Eiri was itching to get out. He hated being in a hospital: bad food, numerous tests, frequent check-ups, and - what he hated the most - long visiting hours. Although he managed an agreement with the doctors to not allow fans in, a few still managed to seep inside using any and all imaginable means. In one instance, five days ago, a fan threatening to pepper-spray herself in the face if the doctor wouldn't let her in, and still another got in by hiding in a box - on which was stamped "To Eiri Yuki".

It seemed that _everyone_ he'd ever known had come to visit him over the course of the two weeks. The constant visitors were - of course - his siblings, Tohma, and his favorite: Shuichi. Although he enjoyed seeing his hyperactive baka, he didn't like the fact that they were never alone; someone else was always present too, and if it wasn't a doctor or a nurse, it was usually Mika or Tohma. Screw it! Didn't that pair have anything better to do besides watch over him?

Mizuki even stopped by a few times during the past week to _suggest_ that now that he wasn't in critical condition anymore, perhaps it'd be best to resume work on his novel. Of course it was just a suggestion, but she hinted that she'd be back many more times after this if he refused. Eiri's brow twitched as she told him this. He clenched his teeth, handed her a key, and then ordered her to bring him his laptop from his apartment - and if she so much as sent him an email during the next several weeks, he'd delete whatever work he had in progress, and wouldn't write a single word for six months.

All the time he spent with Shuichi during the visiting hours, Eiri wanted to express his true feelings to him, but simply couldn't make himself do it. Was it pride? Hurt from past happenings? Fear? Whatever it was it kept Eiri from doing anything more than smile at his lover and hold his hand. _When I get home, I'll _make _myself tell him how I feel - one way or another. I will. More than anything, I want him to know. He deserves it._ Eiri enjoyed holding his lover's small hand, listening to him talk about his day, or laugh about something funny that had happened. He loved the soft, caring expression in Shuichi's eyes when he'd listen to Eiri talk, and he loved the gentle kiss Shu would give him before leaving when visiting hours were up.

He smiled to himself at the thought of how happy he knew his little Shu would be when he finally told him - actually verbalized - that he loved him.

**o---OoO---o**

Eiri was awoken from a light sleep by a nurse who had just walked in. In her hands was a tray, on which were bottles and an envelope. "I'm sorry to disturb you, Uesugi-san, but a letter just arrived that is addressed to you. Would you like it now?"

He sighed. He did _not_ need any fan mail right now. "Who's it from?"

"I'm sorry. There is no name or return address."

Alarm shot through him. No name? No return address? Could it be...? "Did you at least see who delivered it?"

"No sir. But if it is that important to you I could ask the receptionist if she remembers."

"Please do."

She handed him the envelope and left.

Tentatively, he examined the item in his hands. It was a standard sized envelope - the kind you could buy at any store or post office. True to the nurse's word, there was no return info.

He decided to open it.

Eiri tore a strip off the end of the envelope, and carefully peered into the slit he'd made. All he could see was a small slip of paper. Gently, he pulled it out and read:

Dear Eiri Uesugi-san,  
I just heard on the radio that your  
latest novel is due next month. Is  
this true? If so, then it seems that  
you have blatantly ignored all my  
warnings. No longer will I warn  
you.

Sincerely,  
24

Eiri nearly froze with fear - this guy was still after him?! What would he do next? Well, he'd have to know that Eiri was in the hospital - helpless. Would he come in person to finish the job? Would he hire another muscle to do it? Or maybe he'd just kill him through a "medical accident".

_That does it._

He picked up the cream-colored phone which lay on a small table by his bed, and was about to dial when it rang. Startled, he answered, "Hello?"

"Yuki-san?" It was Hiro.

"Yeah, what?"

"Sorry, I wasn't sure if the receptionist had connected me correctly this time. Anyway, is Shuichi with you?"

"...No...isn't he with you?"

"Nope. Haven't seen him since he left to go visit you, but that was nearly 6 hours ago. I know visiting hours ended about 2 hours ago, but he still hasn't shown up - and he said he was coming right back to my place afterwards. I tried calling his cell, but I keep getting his voice mail. Did he say anything about his plans for after he left?"

A dreadful, sinking feeling rose in Eiri's chest as he listened to Hiro talk. Could the reason Shuichi was missing be because of this 24 person? No. No. NO!!! It couldn't be! It was probably just a false alarm...but could he really take such a risk? Eiri fought the panic he felt coming on. "HIROSHI! Call everyone Shuichi knows and ask if they've seen or know where he is. If you still can't locate him, I'll call Tohma and have him form a search. We _have_ to find him! It's extremely important, and if what I'm suspecting is correct...than Shu may be in serious trouble."

"Whoa! Slow down there. Shuichi disappears like this all the time. He doesn't need to tell people where he's gonna be at every second...so what makes you think he's in trouble?"

"Look, it's a _very_ long story, and I fucking swear I'll explain it, but NOT FUCKING NOW! We need to try to find him first." He slammed the phone back in its cradle - terminating the call. He picked it up again and was about to dial a number, when the nurse walked in.

"Uesugi-san? The receptionist said a young school boy delivered the letter. She also said that he didn't give his name, and there wasn't anybody with him. All the boy said was that a man with a hood paid him 10,000 yen to deliver the envelope here. If that's all, than I'll be going now."

"Wait, did the boy say what the guys name was?"

"He said he didn't give it to him."

"Dammit. Okay, thanks for the info."

"Douitashimashite, Uesugi-san."

Eiri waited till she closed the door before calling all the people Shu had ever mentioned knowing. All the numbers he had to search out from the phone book. Still, nobody had seen or heard from him in times ranging from 8 hours to 8 months.

He had just finished his last call when the phone rang.

"Hello."

"I called everyone I could think of and none have heard from Shu."

"I'm calling Tohma now." He hung up and dialed one of the few numbers he didn't have to look up in the phone book.

"This is Seguchi."

"Tohma it's me. Look, something's happened and I need your help."

"You know you can always rely on me for whatever you might need."

"Sure. Do you remember that incident two months back when my apartment was trashed? Well, the sonuvabitch has struck again."

"Are you referring to your attack?"

"No, I think he may have kidnapped Shuichi. _Nobody's_ seen or heard from him for the past couple of hours, and I just received a threat that suggests he was kidnapped. Listen, you _have_ to help me find him. If anything happens to Shu that could have been prevented..."

Tohma needed no farther explanation. He knew that if anything were to ever happen to Shuichi Shindou, it would hurt Eiri beyond anyone's help - and Tohma wouldn't have that. "You don't even have to ask. I'll call K-san and Shindou-kun's band mates for a meeting to decide our next move. By the way, are you able to leave the hospital yet, Eiri-kun?"

"What do you fucking think? I've only been here for two weeks...but I can already move around some without much trouble..."

"No, don't even think about it. _Please_ don't do anything that may overexert yourself. Trust me - I'll get Shindou-kun back safely for you. Just rest. Please. I'll also need for you to fully explain what has been going on - it may help with our search..."

"Aa, whatever. Just get everyone assembled and let me know what they plan to do."

Eiri hung up. _Bullshit. Like hell I can trust you. I only trust that you'll do as I ask because you know I'll kill you if you ever hurt Shu - or if he's ever hurt _because _of you. I just need you to form a search for him. And how can knowing what's been going on these past several months help with your search? Jerk. All you want that info for is to satisfy your own damn curiosity. Now... how exactly does one escape from a hospital?_

**END EPISODE 6**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": OMG, has Shuichi really been kidnapped?!?! There's only one way to find out...and that's to read episode 7. Oh, and for all yous K fans out there, he's gonna be a lot more involved in the story now. PLUS - we'll FINALLY learn the identity of the notorious 24)

**Author's Notes:**  
Sorry this chapter was so short, but I couldn't think of any other place to break it off. My next chapter might be short too. Oh, and for those of you who were wondering, 10,000 yen is equal to about 90 U.S. dollars. And again (I know I'm being real repetative) THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS!!!

**Japanese Words Used:**  
Douitashimashite - You're welcome  
Aa - Yeah (very informal)


	7. 24 UNMASKED! Finally

**oO--oOo--Oo**

**Episode 7: 24 UNMASKED! (finally)**

"Approximately 20 minutes ago I was disturbed from a much needed rest by a call from the president asking me to come in to work today, or more precisely, _right now_." K fumed as he paced impatiently. "Now, this upsets me - and do you want to know _why_ this upsets me?"

Hiro rolled his eyes, which were - lucky for him - safely hidden behind dark sunglasses. His manager's drama was annoying. "Do tell."

He, Suguru, Sakano, and K were inside one of NG's lounges, waiting for the president to show up. Each had received a similar call asking them to come in immediately, and neither had the foggiest idea why, except for Hiro that is. He wondered if this had anything to do with Shuichi being missing. No one was bothered by being called in on their day off as they weren't doing anything important anyway. That is, everyone except K. He was looking extremely pissed.

"This upsets me because TODAY WAS SUPPOSED TO BE MY DAY OFF! If that damn call had come from ANYONE other than the president himself, I would NOT have shown up."

"Well maybe that's why my cousin called you himself. Of course if you really don't want to be here, than take it out on Seguchi-san - not us. We can't do a thing about it, and your bitching and moaning is really beginning to annoy me."

Sakano's jaw literally dropped to the floor, and everyone else froze when Suguru finished his sentence. Never before had _anyone_ displayed such audacity towards their gun-totin' American manager, and especially not right to his face... or within point-blank range of his weapons. Sakano panicked and clamped his hands over his ears, shakingly waiting for the impending shot to be fired. He was not disappointed.

A deafening bang and a thin wisp of smoke emitted from the barrel of K's firearm. A newly made hole materialized only centimeters from the keyboardist's arm.

Suguru hadn't even flinched.

"Sorry K-san. Your little gun games may work on a certain vocalist, but not on me. If you really want to intimidate me, you'll have to discover my deepest fear and threaten me with it. Unfortunately for you though, I don't have any fears. So you can quit trying to boss me around. And you, Sakano-san," he turned towards the paleing producer and pointed at the wall, "might want to patch up that little hole before my cousin gets here."

With that, Suguru tossed his head and made his way towards a water fountain in the next room. Nobody stood in his way. K only raised an eyebrow.

"Hmm, seems like I'm gonna have to learn his deepest fear. Now, what could Suguru Fujisaki possibly be afraid of?..."

Just then Tohma Seguchi walked into the room. He took one glance at everyone present, "Where is my cousin?"

"Oh, mister president sir, he just left to the next room to get some water. He should be right back."

Tohma stared curiously at Sakano, who had just spoken, "Why Sakano-san, you seem a little shaken. Did something happen just now?"

Everyone was saved from answering as Suguru walked back into the room - a bored expression on his face.

"Alright everyone; please take a seat." Tohma walked to the window at the head of the coffee table around where everyone was sitting. Now then - to business. It seems that Bad Luck's vocalist, Shuichi Shindou-kun has been missing for several hours now. Normally that wouldn't be a problem - assuming that he wasn't missing during work hours - but my brother in law, Eiri-san, says that he has reason to believe that Shindou-kun has been kidnapped."

Hiro gasped, K raised an eyebrow, Suguru frowned, and Sakano fainted.

_So that's why he sounded so frantic when I spoke with him earlier, but I never imagined it was _this_ bad_, thought Hiro.

"He promised to explain everything, but until then, we need to -"

Just then the door burst open, and a panting, exhausted looking Eiri Yuki stumbled in. Tohma rushed over to him to help steady him, "Oh my god Eiri-san! What are you doing here? How did you manage to get here? Should you even be out of bed in your condition?!

Eiri continued to pant as he sat down. Several minutes and two glasses of water later, Eiri had finally recovered enough to speak.

"I need to explain - something I should have done from the very beginning." He paused, and Tohma gestured for him to continue, "It started a few months ago. I had received anonymous phone calls and letters, all threatening me to quit my career... or else. I ignored them of course; the reason being that odd letters and such are pretty much guaranteed in my line of work. Not only that, but they'd all come through public lines - information anyone could access. I didn't pay them any heed until I started receiving them on my private phone and email. By that time, the bastard finally identified himself by signing every message he sent me with a '24' - if you can really call that identifying. Anywa-" He stopped midword when he noticed K's and Hiro's expressions. K had shifted uncomfortably and Hiro's eyes had widened.

"...Yuki-san," Hiro began slowly, "Did you just say that he called himself... '24'?"

Eiri eyed him wearily, "Yes I did, Nakano."

"Did he write them out with words or numbers?"

"...Numbers. What is this leading up to?"

K and Hiro exchanged worried glances, and then K spoke up. "I take it you haven't been keeping up with the news, otherwise you would've heard. A few months ago a patient at the North Hill Asylum in Shinjuku had escaped. Of course, being that all their patients are violent, any escape would make headline news, but this particular person is more dangerous than the rest. The bastard, a Russian known as Rafael Bashkir, was admitted to that facility about five years ago after he was charged with numerous murders. The bitch of it is _how_ he committed them; by skinning all his victims - alive. The victims consisted of men, women, and children, neither of which had any ties to each other, and all were of a varied backgrounds - no connections whatsoever.They were just random murders. This man showed absolutely no remorse for his actions, nor did he deny doing them. He was sentenced to life in North Hill - instead of the electric chair - due to some shit about an insanity plea from his defense attorney. Damn bastard, of COURSE you have to be insane to even _think_ about doing shit like that. Anyway, how he escaped is still unknown. Since his escape, there haven't been any more victims - that we know of - but that's no guarantee that he won't kill again. His aliases include 'skinner', 'blade', and his most widely used... '24'."

A hush fell over the room as the information sunk into all its occupants.

Eiri was silent as he clenched his jaw. He could _not_ believe what he'd just heard. Was it possible that _this_ 24 was _the_ 24? And if so, why was he so obsessed with ending his career? Why did he want to hurt him? He'd never even heard of the bastard before now, and if his suspicions were correct, had he actually kidnapped Shuichi?

"Oh god... my Shuichi is in the hands of that son-of-a-bitch monster?!" Eiri's normally composed voice cracked with emotion. Emotion he hadn't felt in such a long time...

Tohma put a comforting hand on Eiri's shoulder, "Please calm down, Eiri-san. We don't even know for certain that 24 really has him. For all we know Shindou-kun may actually be safe somewhere, oblivious to all this."

"But can we risk it?" The question came from Suguru, who was still trying to get the appalling images of skinned people out of his mind. "If this bastard really does have Shindou, than there is no telling what he'll do to him - especially if he knows how important he is to Yuki-san. No, we can't afford to assume he's safe. Not yet at least."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"But how do we start looking?" Hiro inquired, "We've already contacted everyone who knows Shu, and Seguchi-san even ordered an all-points bulletin for him, so he'll be spotted if he tries to leave the city."

"H-how about calling hospitals and police stations?" Sakano asked, twisting his hands nervously.

"Already done." answered K.

"Clubs? Bars?" suggested Hiro.

"Done that too."

"Okay, let's suppose that 24 has actually kidnapped Shindou-kun. Why did he do it? Yes, I know its purpose is to provoke Eiri-san, but what exactly will he do with him? Will he force Eiri to quit by threatening to hurt Shindou-kun if he doesn't comply? Will he demand a ransom?" Tohma put a finger to his chin in an effort to think up any more reasons. He sighed when he couldn't think of any more. "We've done all we can right now. All there is to do is formally report him missing to the police, but that can't be done until he's been missing for 24 hours - and if Eiri-san is correct with his suspicions - than it may be too late then. Unfortunately, I think the only thing left to do - is wait."

Hey, Ive got a question, said Suguru, who was now feeling slightly nauseous. I can understand blade and skinner as appropriate labels for this guy considering what his crimes were, but why 24? Is that number a reference of some kind, or just something random?

K answered in a serious tone. This has never been confirmed, but rumor has it that 24 is the number of times he stabbed his wife his first victim - before skinning her.

How could that have not been confirmed?

They never found her skin.

Poor Suguru couldnt take it anymore. He jumped up from his chair and ran to the bathroom gagging and covering his mouth.

**o--OoO--o**

**END EPISODE 7**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": So now it's a waiting game our characters are gonna have to play; a long, tiring, and frustrating game - especially for poor Eiri. Also, 24 will finally make semi-live contact with Eiri. What will they talk about? If you wanna know, than you'll have to play a little waiting game of your own... until episode 8 anyways.)

**Author's Notes:**  
Another real short chapter... but don't worry, cuz the next one is gonna be really long. Oh and btw... after much studying and taking tests, I am FINALLY DONE WITH HIGHSCHOOL!! Oh squee I'm so excited! Now I can spend more time on writing :) Well, a bit more, cuz I have some reviewing to do for the ACT and SAT tests...

CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2008!! :)


	8. The Search Is On

**oO--oOo--Oo**

**Episode 8: The Search Is On**

After Suguru left, K suggested that if 24 really did kidnap Shuichi, it would only make sense that he'd contact Eiri with some kind of demand. The best thing to do for now was to wait at Eiri's house for the contact. Everyone agreed.

Though Eiri normally wasnt very fond of having so many visitors in his house at one time, he relented on account of the circumstances. He even suggested inviting his siblings to join them just in case they needed backup. The group figured that they wouldn't have long to wait before 24 surfaced to give his demands.

**o--OoO--o**

"Okay, we need a plan of action." K said while pacing back and forth in Eiri's large living room. Everyone else sat waiting.

"We need to have a plan to act on for when he calls. As you can see, I already installed tracers and recording devices to both the cell and home phones. Plus, I installed special software inside Yuki's email program, whichll let me trace any incoming emails right back to the sender - just in case he decides that phoning isnt cool enough."

"Whoa, thats awesome, man!" Exclaimed Tatsuha, "You gotta tell me where you get all this stuff - especially the recording device for the phone - sigh there _are_ a few phone conversations that really are worth recording..." He didn't need to explain any further for everyone to catch his meaning. Whenever he and his lover, Ryuichi Sakuma were apart, they'd call each other at night and would listen to each other masturbate. Even though the phone flawed much of the sounds purity by putting a slightly computerized edge to them - they were still real enough, and Tatsuha wished he could record and play them back whenever he wanted. Oh boy, there wasn't a sexier sound in the world than that of Ryuichi Sakuma at the peak of orgasm! Tatsuha nearly drooled at the thought.

K chuckled. "Hah! You wish. The only person I'd ever consider sharing _that_ info with is..." he paused to think. "A life companion."

Tatsuha smirked and turned to Hiro who was seated right next to him. He whispered "Hey, do me a favor ya? Get in reeeeeaal close to that guy and tell me whatever secrets he divulges to you. Heck, I'll even pay you... just not too much."

Hiro clenched his teeth and tried to keep from blushing. Yes, while it was true that he had a crush on the trigger-happy American with the colorful personality, nobody else knew about it. Not even K himself. It was something that Hiro had kept to himself since he'd met him. He never even had the balls to tell Shuichi. For one, it was too embarrassing. Two, he worried that his friend might accidentally let it slip - and that would also be extremely embarrassing. Besides, K had never shown even the slightest interest in him. _Heh, if he ever found out, he'd either shoot the wall 2 cm from my head in an effort to "snap me out of it", or believe me to have gone mad and put me in a padded room somewhere. Nah, it's better that nobody knows._

"Nothing to say to that, eh Hiro-kun?" Tatsuha's voice startled Hiro out of his thoughts and he jumped slightly.

Tatsuhas smirk grew evil as he nodded knowingly.

"Anyway," K continued, "If he calls, I'll need you Yuki to answer the phone of course. Try to keep him talking as long as possible without making it seem obvious. After you hang up, we'll go over the recording to see if we can hear any revealing background noises that may help pinpoint his whereabouts - a train rolling by, a plane flying overhead... even a dog barking would be a help."

"How the hell would a dog barking help?" asked Tatsuha.

Suguru shrugged. "Maybe K-san can run voice-pattern scans to determine what type of dog it is."

"Oh puh-LEEZ. All damn dogs bark the same. Besides, how would _that_ help us any?"

"Because," said K, "Let's say we get multiple possible locations on his whereabouts. We'd check them all for a dog of that type, and then start searching that area first."

"Oookeeee."

"Just continue, K-san." Mika said, clearly irritated.

K cleared his throat, "If he happens to contact us through email, that will be an even bigger help. My program will give me the _exact_ location of whatever device he uses to send it. It'll also tell me what device he used, whether it'd be another computer, a cell phone, or a totally different device altogether."

Just then, the phone rang. Everyone froze, and then K and Eiri leaped into action. K quickly pulled on the headphones and pressed "record", while Eiri prepared to answer the call. "Okay now, just remember everything I told you... go!"

Eiri picked up. "Hello?"

Exactly two seconds later, K rolled his eyes.

Eiri's eyes narrowed and he answered coldly, "Maybe. But he doesn't feel like talking to you right now. Don't ever call this number again, got it?"

He slammed the phone back into its cradle and turned menacingly towards his brother. "How in hell did that little fuck of yours get my number?"

Tatsuha reddened. "Y-you mean that was Ryu?" he laughed nervously and shifted in his seat. "I have no idea - really! I just told him that I'd be here and to call if he needed anything, but I just assumed he'd call my cell. I really, honestly have no idea how he got _your_ number!"

Suddenly the realization of how rudely his brother had spoken to his Ryu-kun sank in. His brow twitched as he tried to control his anger, "Hey! Aniki you didn't have to talk to him like that, he didn't-"

Mika slapped him on the head. "Just shut up. You can _apologize_ to him later." Her emphasis on the word 'apologize' made it clear that she knew exactly how he intended to do so.

**o--OoO--o**

Two hours went by without any action. Mostly the time was spent either trying to come up with any more possible plans to deal with whatever scenario that happened to come up, or simply talking about random nothings.

Suddenly, the phone rang.

In three seconds flat K put on the headphones, prepared his equipment to record, and gave Eiri the signal to answer. Everyone else tensed, sure that this was THE call this time.

"Hello?"

"Ah, hello Uesugi-san. How has your day been? Oh, wait a moment... aren't you supposed to be in the hospital?" The taunting voice made Eiri clench the phone till his knuckles turned white. K listened intently.

"Such a tragic event that caused your being there. Anyway, I see you've assembled a nice array of people in your ritzy little living room,"

K blinked - how did he know?

24 continued, "I had no idea you were such a social bug. Although I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, you _are_ full of surprises after all. Wink wink."

Eiri clenched his teeth. "Enough with the fucking chatter dammit! Tell me where Shuichi is!"

"Patience, patience young one. Everything will be revealed to you in due time. But before that, have you chosen your gold yet?"

Eiri was silent.

"Oh, how indecisive! Well then, I suppose I'll exchange one of your original options for another. Your first two choices for your gold were either your career or your life. But since you seem to have such a hard time deciding, why not make the choices a little easier? Now, you can choose from something else as your gold. Your writing career - the item that has brought you the fame and fortune you currently have - or you can choose the little brat you call 'Shuichi'. Now then, are these choices easier?"

K suddenly looked at his monitor in puzzlement, and began pressing several knobs and buttons.

Eiri closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Please," he hissed. "Let. Shuichi. Go. He has absolutely nothing to do with this."

"Ah, but that is where you are wrong, Uesugi-san. Little Shindou-kun has _everything_ to do with this! His unfortunate involvement with you has caused that. So I'll ask you again - and for the last time: Which is your gold? The career or the boy? If you want your career, all you need to do is say so and it's yours. The only thing you lose is the brat. But, if you choose the kid, the only way to get him is to publicly and officially end your career - permanently. Do that and he will be delivered to you unharmed. Otherwise he will die. Take your pick. Ill be sending more instructions at a later date, so until then." he chuckled. "Oh, and the following message is for your foreign friend whom I know is eavesdropping: you aren't the only technologically-savvy individual in this world. Good day."

The line went dead.

Eiri held the phone for a few seconds before placing it back in his cradle. "What did he mean by that, K?"

K cursed. "Godfuckingdammitshit. I couldn't trace him. It appears that he anticipated this and prepared accordingly. At first the trace worked just fine, and then around the middle of your conversation it just stopped. Just like that." He snapped his fingers. "Whatever device he's using, whether it's a public or private, he's got it connected to a wire jammer - and a damn good one to boot. For a nut, he's sure a smart one."

Hiro sighed. "I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but they said on the news that he had an IQ of 157. That's 3 points below Einstein's score."

"...Yes, Hiroshi. That would have been _helpful_." K glared at him. "But it's too late now. And by the way, how come I never heard about that?"

Eiri interrupted. "So you didn't get _anything_ K?"

"Well, I may not have been able to trace it, but I _was_ able to record it. I'll put it on speaker playback so everyone can hear."

As the recording played back, K occasionally adjusted certain controls to enhance any background noises. So far though, there was nothing.

They played the tape over and over again, trying to pick up some sound - any sound - that could reveal his location.

Apparently, 24 anticipated this also, and seemed to have called from a very quiet room. Too quiet...

_My equipment is top of the line. State of the art. If even a pin had dropped in that room I should have been able to pick it up, but so far I can't hear _anything_ other than his damn voice. That can only mean one thing..._

"I think I know what kind of room he was calling from."

Everyone turned to face K with puzzled expressions.

"What makes you say that, K-san?" asked Tohma. "Did you hear something that identifies the room?"

"No, it's not what I can hear, but what I can't hear. Okay, I'm gonna switch off his voice and only play background noises. Listen closely and tell me what you hear."

He played back the tape. Everyone paid close attention.

"I can hear him shifting a little." Tohma said.

"But not another damn sound." Tatsuha added.

"My point exactly." K voiced his earlier thoughts about being able to pick up even the slightest of sounds. "My equipment is powerful enough to pick up people whispering up to 100 meters away from the caller, leaves rustling in far away trees, a cigarette being snubbed out, footsteps, anything. The fact the only sounds we can hear is him shifting around means that he's in a sound proof room. And not just any sound proof room, a slightly _padded_ sound proof room, hence the fact that his voice doesn't echo. Now the question is, where do we have sound proof rooms in this city?"

Hiro furrowed his brow. He knew that a lot of the recording rooms at NG were of the padded, sound proof types - to prevent unwanted echoing. But no, 24 couldn't possibly have called from one of those rooms. For one, how would he get in? Not just anybody is allowed in those areas of the building. He'd have to show some kind of identification - identification he sure as hell didn't have. Maybe he used Shu to get in? No, thanks to Seguchi, everyone in the building knew that the vocalist had gone missing - or did they?

"Seguchi-san," Hiro stood, "does everyone at NG know about Shuichi?"

"Of course, I alerted everyone myself."

"Do you think it's possible that you missed someone?"

Tohma stroked his chin thoughtfully, "What are you getting at, Nakano-san?"

"What if the kidnapper had tapped your phones and made a list of all the employees you called, and then used Shuichi to let him into the building by passing by a person who hadn't been alerted?"

"You are assuming an awful lot, Hiroshi." K said, crossing his arms. "What makes you think the room is even located in NG? There are countless other places with padded sound proof rooms."

Tohma sighed, "You have a point K-san, but what Nakano-san said _is_ also a possibility. We can't afford to shrug off any of those. I suppose we could have a look at the security tapes just to be sure though."

Hiro closed his eyes and replayed the tape through his mind. He was missing something. Something was nagging at him. Why did he think the room was at NG? Why? For some reason he felt damn positive the room was located there, but why? What was making think that? Yes, if the voice was removed there was silence other than the shifting, but wait...

The solution hit him like a ton of bricks.

"K..." Began Hiro slowly, "Did it ever occur to you the fact that cell phones don't even get _signal_ in sound proofed rooms? The materials that make them sound proof also block cell phone signals."

A glimmer of understanding began to form in K's eyes.

"And also, there are never any land line phone-jacks available to those types of rooms..."

"Except for...the room in Studio E on the second floor! Hiro you are a genius!" K clapped Hiro on the shoulder, a little too hard actually. "I had completely forgotten about that room! During the construction of the NG building, an error resulted in a phone jack being placed in that room, an error that few knew of and even fewer cared about since almost nobody used that studio anyway. And since Studio E of NG is the only sound proofed room in Tokyo with a phone jack, that _must_ be where the call was made from. Suguru and Tatsuha, stay here until you receive further orders. Mika, you can go home for now, but keep your cell phone with you and be ready to leave your house at any time. Hiro and Sakano, come with Tohma and me. As for you, Yuki..."

"I'm coming."

"Fine with me. Now, Mr. President, let's go see those security tapes."

**o--OoO--o**

A systematic inspection of NGs security tapes revealed an erased segment between 7:34 pm and 8:32 pm.

K switched off the monitor. "Looks like somebody erased exactly 58 minutes of this tape. Care to guess who it was?" _That bastard. He really did think of everything_.

"But that call only lasted about 3 minutes, and it would not take more than 15 minutes to reach Studio E, make the call, then leave." Eiri observed. "What was he doing the rest of the time?"

"Well," answered K, "One things for sure - it wasnt spent _finding_ the right studio. You see, the bastard erased this tape remotely, and I know this because I checked the tape for the south hall cam - the only path to this office - and it's clean, except for the guards changing shifts. So the way I see it, is if 24 knew enough to hack into security unnoticed, then he most definitely knew where to find Studio E, and about the studios mistakenly added utility. And like Yuki observed, It doesn't take very long to arrive in Studio E from any entrance in the building. So either he did something else before or after the phone call, or something unforeseen came up that kept him here overtime. The only question is - what?"

Tohma thoughtfully put a finger on his bottom lip. "Sakano-san, please find an inventory sheet for the equipment of every studio in this building." He turned to the others. "Perhaps you should check for missing items? Knowing what if anything was stolen could give us an idea of what his next course of action is. You should also examine Studio E for any possible clues."

"Just what I was thinking... except, what are _you_ going to do while we all slave away checking off items from a list?" K asked.

Tohma just smiled. He then turned to Eiri and put a hand on his shoulder. "I suggest you stay here and rest. You are overexerting yourself simply by not being in bed. I will absolutely not have you collapsing from unnecessary fatigue. Onegai, Eiri-kun, please stay here. You can watch us over the monitors, and Ill drive you home in a few minutes."

Eiri glared at him, but said nothing. He knew Tohma was right. Sighing, Eiri nodded in reluctant submission and turned his chair towards the computer screens.

K, Tohma, Hiro, and Sakano left the room and closed the door.

**o--OoO--o**

K called Suguru and Tatsuha over from Eiris apartment to help check off equipment. The team of five then spent the next two days split into two groups. One group would search every single room in the entire NG building and check off countless inventory lists, while the other stayed at Eiri's apartment just in case 24 tried to contact them again.

Since Shuichi wasn't present, Bad Luck had no reason to practice, and it also meant that K didn't need to work. So they all had plenty of time to search.

The day before, after finishing up some work that couldnt wait another day, Tohma drove Eiri back home. He had wanted to stay and keep Eiri company, but Eiri would not have that. He wanted to be left alone. So NG's president went back to his building to assist in the still on-going search.

For those two days, not a word was heard from Shuichi's kidnapper, and everyone was starting to get increasingly worried.

When the search ended, the team discovered only three items missing, and all were from various studios from the second floor. The items were a micro video camera, its tripod, and its case of accessories. But what they couldnt figure out was the fact that it doesn't take nearly an hour to steal such small items, so what was 24 doing the rest of the time?

**o--OoO--o**

(Cue music for The Reason by Hoobastank)

/ I'm not a perfect person,  
there's many things I wish I didn't do, /

Eiri sat on the floor in front of his couch in his living room, idly staring out the window. He stayed that way a long time.

/ but I continue learning,  
I never meant to do those things to you, /

An entire week had passed and still absolutely no sign of Shuichi, or even 24. Despite all of Tohma's efforts, he couldn't discover any leads as to Shuichi's whereabouts, and ultimately ended up reporting his disappearance and suspected kidnapping to the police.

/ and so I have to say before I go,  
that I just want you to know, /

Bad Luck's progress was put on hold indefinitely, not surprising since Hiro refused to practice without their singer, and Suguru wouldn't practice alone.

/ I've found a reason for me,  
to change who I used to be,  
a reason to start over new,  
and the reason is you. /

Eiri stopped calling his brother-in-law every other hour for a report, but instead stayed at home trying to rest. He reasoned that since he was pretty useless in his current condition, he might as well try to recover. It wasn't easy though, because he couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Shuichi looking at him. Sometimes he was smiling, other times he was crying. Still other times he was looking up at him with big violet eyes, telling him that he loved him.

/ I'm sorry that I hurt you,  
it's something I must live with everyday, /

Opening his eyes was no help either. Everywhere he looked he was reminded of his little lover. Shu's favorite mug on the kitchen counter, Shu's t-shirt strewn carelessly on the floor in the bathroom, Shu's favorite poster of Nittle Grasper that he had somehow persuaded Eiri to let him put up on the wall of their bedroom. Everywhere - Shuichi, Shuichi, Shuichi.

/ and all the pain I put you through,  
I wish that I could take it all away,  
and be the one who catches all your tears, /

Oh how long it had been since Eiri let his emotions take over him like this. Since the incident with Kitazawa, he had trained himself little by little to build a heavy wall around the part of his brain that handled emotions - so that they could be contained. Now, however, that wall was slowly crumbling. He hadn't even realized how much he cared about the little singer until he left.

_Damn it all. Why'd you have to get yourself kidnapped Shu? Are you even alive right now? And if you are alive, are you okay? Has he hurt you? If that fucking bastard has so much as given you a mean look, I swear I'll rip him apart with my bare hands. Oh Shu... Shuichi... what are you thinking right now? Are you thinking about your family? Your friends? Your band? ...Me? Do you even love my anymore after all that I've done to you these past several months? Whoever said 'you don't know what you've got till it's gone' wasn't kidding. Nope - not in the least._when_ I get you back, I'll _be_ there for you. I'll be kinder to you. I'll wipe away your tears when you cry. I won't yell at you all the time. And damn it, I'll even eat the food you cook for me no matter how nasty it is. Just please return to me, my baby, I love you._

Oh Shuichi, if only you were here I'd hold you in my arms and tell you that you aren't just some toy to me, and that you mean more to me than my own life. It's all my fault. If only I had shown you even a little kindness, if only I had been there for you when you needed me. Oh god, I swear with every fiber of my being that if - no -

/ that's why I need you to hear,  
I've found a reason for me, /

Eiri felt a lump rising in his throat. He blinked, only to feel hot tears which had welded up in his eyes, fall over his cheeks and onto the ground. _What's the matter with me? Why the hell am I crying?_ He sniffed, than completely broke down. _Is this... is this what Shuichi feels like when I'm mean to him? Oh god, how could I allow him to feel this way?_

/ to change who I used to be  
a reason to start over new, /

He wiped his face with the back of his hand, and then dug around in his pockets for a tissue. He found something else instead. In his back pocket he felt something stiff. It was too hard to be a tissue. Curious, he pulled it out, and examined it. It appeared to be an old piece of folded paper that had obviously gone through a few washes along with the pants. Upon opening it, he recognized it as the piece of paper Hiro had given him several weeks ago - the paper with Shuichi's lyrics. He had completely forgotten about it. Even though the ink was faded, he could clearly recognize the teen's handwriting, and knowing that Shuichi had held this paper gave him comfort. What he read though, made Eiri feel sick with regret.

/ and the reason is you!  
and the reason is you!  
and the reason is you!  
and the reason is you! /

_- Unrequited Love -_

_Though your lifeless eyes look through me,  
and your thoughtless curses scarred me,  
though your heartless hands cut through me,  
and your coldness envelopes me,  
my love for you is endless,  
pure, unfiltered; flawless._

_Chorus  
Yet despite your icy bitterness,  
flowing from empty golden eyes,  
Ill always spare you tenderness,  
and never leave you lonely._

_I hope one day youll love me,  
and show me with no doubts.  
Embrace me unobstructed,  
your warmth is all I wanted.  
Though my love goes unrequited,  
and cries of pain unheard,  
my love for you is endless,  
pure, unfiltered; flawless._

_If only you could know,  
oh how much I love you so,  
and worry, watch, and wait,  
when you arrive back home so late.  
Oh, if only, if only,  
you could feel the tears I shed,  
from senseless fights and arguments,  
resulting in you leaving,  
and my sleeping alone in bed._

_Because my love for you is endless.  
Pure. Unfiltered. Flawless._

/ I'm not a perfect person  
I never meant to do those things to you  
and so I have to say before I go  
that I just want you to know, /

Eiri clenched his teeth. He had had enough. Enough of waiting.

/ I've found a reason for me  
to change who I used to be  
a reason to start over new  
and the reason is you /

He stood up, grabbed his coat, snatched his car keys from the shelf by the door, and stormed out of the building. He was going to go to NG.

/ I've found a reason to show  
a side of me you didn't know  
a reason for all that I do  
and the reason is you. /

**o--OoO--o**

K, Tohma, Hiro, and Suguru were huddled around a television screen in Tohma's office. They were watching a video they had received anonymously just that afternoon. On the screen was a man. The man had very pale skin and wore black clothes. He had neck-length black hair with long sideburns, and a half-moon scar on his left shoulder, and clasped tightly in his right hand, was a very big knife.

"_I don't believe any introductions are necessary,_" said the sinister voice from the screen. "_I am more than certain you know who I am. Anyway, down to business. I have one of your choices with me, and I'm finished with giving you time to decide..._"

**o--OoO--o**

Eiri arrived at NG not 10 minutes later, stalking angrily through the ground floor towards the elevators. An unfortunate businessman, who hadn't noticed Eiri, had walked right into him, which earned him a vicious shove into the nearest wall. The man started to yell at him but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the look the blond novelist gave him. It was a look that could make even the devil cringe. He smartly backed off - and fast.

Arriving at Tohma's office, Eiri unceremoniously let himself in. Everyone stared in shock at the new comer, than quickly scrambled for the remote to turn off the TV, but not before Eiri had stopped short, frozen when he recognized the figures on the screen.

**END EPISODE 8**

(In the next episode of More Precious than Gold: So we know what Eiri, Tohma, K, and the others have been up too all the while Shuichi was missing... but whats been going on with our little Shu? Hes _obviously_ missing now, and its also obvious that 24 has him. In the next episode, well check up on him.)

**Authors Notes: **No, I did not forget about this story... I have just been putting off updating for a long time. Anyway, there are a few things I want to talk about which deal with this chapter. First off, that whole stuff about the sound proofed rooms, well, I completely made it all up. Truth is, I have absolutely NO idea if those kinds of rooms really block cell phone signals, or if phone jacks are available in them. It sounded plausible though (at least to me it did), so I used it. Feel free to criticize me for that. Also, those lyrics to Unrequited Love that Shuichi wrote, belong to me. Yes, I wrote them myself, so Id really appreciate it if nobody takes them and claims it as their own work. I dont know if theyre any good though, all I know is that I got my point across with them, which was my goal anyway.

**Disclaimer: **The lyrics used are from the song The Reason by Hoobastank, and do not belong to me in any way, shape, or form. I claim no ownership of them, nor do I make any money off using them here. They belong to their respective owners/creators.

**Japanese Words Used:**  
Aniki - Older brother  
Onegai - Please

**Notes to my Reviewers:**

I slightly re-wrote a few lines from the previous chapter, cuz I agree that Eiri isn't really the type to get so emotional that his voice cracks lol. Well, maybe that wasn't necessary, cuz I have him actually _crying_ in this chapter. The reason I did that was because I wanted to convey just how much he missed Shuichi, and how the confusion, pain, and torment that he faced in his past was causing his current trouble to feel 10 times worse, and make him do things that he normally wouldn't, like cry. I'm still trying to keep him as IC as possible, so if you have any suggestions or criticisms, I'm open to hear them.

And just in case you're wondering... I got the whole "skinning alive" idea from an episode I saw of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. This maniac, for political reasons (if I'm remembering correctly), would skin various women and children... alive. The very idea made me sick, cuz such a thing had never occured to me before. I'm trying to make this guy 24 seem as heinous as possible, so that's why I borrowed that idea.

So highschool's over and done with, and now I'm on my way to college. I'm actually looking forward to it I'll probably go into some kind of computer-related field, but I'm not 100 sure what yet. Hmm... oh well, I have enough time to figure things out! :)


	9. Video Horrors

**oO--oOo--Oo**

**Episode 9: Video Horrors**

*One week earlier*

Shuichi Shindou slowly regained consciousness. Little by little his five senses began to function, causing him to feel alive once more. He struggled to open his eyes, but could only glimpse tiny pinpoints of light. The light eventually gave way to vague images a bit blurry at first but soon came together and made sense. As his eyes finally opened completely, and his vision adjusted to the light, he could make out a window, a small book shelf, and a cheap lamp on an equally shoddy table nearby.

He tried rubbing his eyes, but for some reason his arms felt cemented behind his back. No wait he wriggled around a bit _tied_ behind his back would be more accurate, and pretty tightly too. He looked down and saw that his feet were bound as well. A gag in his mouth kept him from calling out.

He looked down, and noticed for the first time that he was on a bed. Unfortunately, it wasn t very comfortable. The old quilt blanket he was laying on didn t quite suppress the metal springs and coils that jabbed at him through the thin, heavily worn mattress.

_What the hell? What is this place? Why am I tied up like this? The last thing I remember is... finishing my drink in that bar... then leaving... then walking back towards Yuki's place... then... nothing. _He gave a muffled gasp, realization dawning on him. _I... I was kidnapped! Oh no, oh no, oh no! What's gonna happen to me? Will I get out of this alive?_ He shivered as he thought of all the horror stories he'd heard about kidnapped victims turning up dead, or worse: never being found - ever!

_I have_ got _to find a way out of here, but first I need to get loose from these ropes._

Shuichi began his attempt to wriggle free from the ropes, but was interrupted by approaching footsteps from the outside the hall. The footsteps echoed as they drew near, and gave poor Shuichi the feeling of impending doom. He darted his eyes around the room in panic. The footsteps stopped right outside the door, and he watched as the knob turned and the door eerily creaked open... like in a horror movie.

He swallowed and his breath quickened as he waited to see who his kidnapper was.

The door finally opened, but the darkness from the hall kept Shu from seeing who it was. The stranger slowly walked into the light.

"Oh, Shindou-san, how delightful to see you have finally awoken! The eerily cheery voice confused Shu momentarily as he tried to discern whether or not the tone was genuine. Allow me to introduce myself, the stranger continued. My name is 24. Would you like something to drink?"

24. It sounded familiar... where had he heard that name before?

Shuichi studied the man who stood before him. He was tall, though not as tall as Yuki, and had neck-length black hair, long sideburns, light brown eyes, and strangely pale skin. He wore black clothing. On his face was a cold, calculating smile. As he walked, the sleeve of his loose shirt fell over his shoulder, and Shu could see scar that resembled a half moon.

24 sat on the bed next to Shuichi and gently helped him up into a sitting position. He took the gag out of his mouth and held a glass of water up to Shu's lips.

Shuichi eyed the glass wearily for a few moments, wondering if it was safe to drink, but his thirst overcame him and he gulped it down greedily - all the while never taking his eyes off the stranger who went by that odd name.

When he finished drinking he said, "Who are you? And why am I here? Did you kidnap me? What are you gonna do with me???"

The man gave a chuckle, the sound of which sent a chill down Shuichi s spine. "Oh, so many questions. All will be answered in due time, I _assure_ you." 24 spoke with an elegance not often heard in common conversation."You young people are quite the chatter boxes. You probably make poor Yuki-san bored to tears with all the jabbering you do."

Shuichi gasped at the mention of his lover. "Y-you know Yuki?"

"Yes. Yes I do. And I must say that I am most surprised at his current choice of toys. He simply never struck me as the type to go after other men... not to mention annoying little _boys_."

"I-I'm not his toy! I'm his _lover_, and for your information we-"

24 cut him off by putting a finger over Shu's lips, "Shhh, please don't speak. I already know more about that bastard than I care to know."

Shuichi was about to protest, but the stranger pulled out a knife, effectively stopping the words before they left his mouth. The shiny, stainless-steel blade was 9 inches long and 2 inches wide, and it was getting closer to Shu's throat.

24 wrapped an arm around Shuichi to pull him closer. Shu tried to pull back, but was powerless against the man's dominant strength. The fact that he was also tied up didn't help much either.

"There is something about the man you refer to as your _lover_ that you should know. That man is a heartless bastard. A bastard who couldn't care less about how he influences other people. A bastard who couldn't care less about the people he hurts. I would tell you more, but I think that can wait. Right now, all I can think about is how I'm going to get my revenge for what he did to me."

He paused a bit before continuing. "Various studies have shown that the worst thing you can possibly do to a person is not kill them, but destroy the one thing they value more than anything else; in other words, their _gold_. Now, there are many things that one could consider as their gold. Family and friends are popular choices, and so are their own lives, power, reputation, money, and more. Still for others, it's their _careers_. At first I thought the gold of your Yuki was his _fine _career, but after closer inspection, I realized it might be you. If it is you, he shall give up his career in an effort to get you back alive. If not, than I shall be happy to kill you and destroy his gold some other way. Do you understand?"

Shuichi trembled, eyes never leaving the knife. He was too scared to say anything.

24 sighed and decided to simplify his explanation. "I will give your Yuki two options. One, he can keep you, but in exchange must retire from his writing career and _never_ put pen to paper again. Two, he can keep his bill-payer - all he needs to do is tell me so. But in exchange, not only will you not be returned to him, but you will perish in a most unpleasant way. What he has no way of knowing, however, is that even if he picks option two, I will simply find some other way to end his career later. Do you understand _now_?

24 let out a sinister laugh. Shuichi was really beginning to hate this guy.

"P-please tell me why do you want to hurt Yuki? Did he do something bad to you?"

The man gave him a pained smile, but said nothing. Instead, he set the knife down on the cheap table, and put his free arm under Shu's knees, carrying him out of the room. Shu struggled in protest, but to no avail. The older man was _much_ stronger than him.

The room they arrived in had stone walls, dark wood floors, a small bed near the wall, a tiny window with dirty panes, and a single light bulb hanging down from the ceiling. There was a wooden chair in the center of the room that he set Shuichi down on. The chair was chained to the floor, and metal restrainers for the wrists and ankles were attached to the chair. He first untied his ankles and shut them in the restrainers, and then next his wrists.

The rope was tossed carelessly across the room. 24 stepped back and looked at Shuichi for a while, thoughtfully twirling the keys to the restrainers around his finger. He nodded, as if finally deciding what he was going to do next, and left the room.

Shuichi sat alone, chained to the chair and unable to move. Scared, he let his eyes wander around the room. A small chest was near the bed, and he wondered briefly what was in it.

_Is he really going to kill me?_ Shuichi was still trying to absorb everything he was told. _Is he really trying to hurt Yuki? Why? What could Yuki have ever done to hurt him?_

He trembled and felt his eyes well up. _Am I ever going to get out of this? Wait... maybe it wouldn't matter. I mean, Yuki has been treating me worse and worse these past few months. Does he even care about me anymore? Maybe I _am _nothing but a bother. But, I can't help it. I love Yuki so much! But what if I haven't been thinking about what he wants - what if I was being selfish and only thinking about what_ I _want? Maybe he'll be better off without me. As much as I hate to admit it, he doesn't need me. He deserves better. I know that I love him unconditionally, but maybe that isn't enough? Maybe that isn t what he needs?_ The thought made streams of tears flow down his face. _What kind of person _does _Yuki need?_

Just then, 24 walked back into the room, interrupting Shuichi's thoughts. In his hands he carried a tripod and a carrying case that resembled a small suitcase. He set up the tripod just a few feet away from Shu's chair, set the case on the bed, and opened it. Inside was a small video camera, cassettes, lenses, and other photography-related accessories.

He placed the camera on the tripod and spent a few minutes adjusting the focus and aiming the lense at Shuichi, preparing it for use.

Once finished, he put the gag back in Shuichi's mouth and went to stand directly in front of the lens. He switched it to record using a little remote he held in his hand.

"I don't believe any introductions are necessary," He said to the camera in a sinister voice. "I am more than certain you know who I am. Anyway, down to business. I have one of your choices with me, and I'm finished giving you time to decide... "He moved away from the screen, revealing a bound Shuichi behind him.

Shu stared into the lens, not sure what else to do. He couldn't speak, so that was out. Instead he decided to look away.

24, still out of the camera s line of sight, walked towards the bed and picked up a long, thin item. He walked back into view of the camera, keeping the hand holding the item hidden behind his back. Shu saw what he was holding, and gulped, fear creeping into him.

"As you just saw, the individual I have with me is indeed one of your choices... and a very precious individual to you - am I right? How badly do you want him back?" He smiled, and then revealed the item he was hiding to the camera. It was a black riding crop. He held the whip almost lovingly, gently stroking the end with his fingers.

"As I mentioned previously, the time I gave you to decide is up. Detailed instructions will be delivered to you from me soon after you receive this video. I will expect a specific reply from you within 4 hours of your receiving them... or the boy dies no matter what."

Suddenly he took two steps towards Shuichi, and struck him hard across his shoulder with the whip.

Shu yelped with pain and surprise - he barely saw the damn thing coming. Trembling, he cast a fearful glance towards his kidnapper, hoping he wouldn t be hit again. The man merely smiled and stroked Shuichi's face, then turned back to the camera.

Tears began to stream down the little singer s face. The pain from the whip, and the fear of being in a stranger's possession made him long for the security of Yuki's arms, safe from harm. His eyes lingered towards the room's only window, and saw a little blue bird sitting on the sill behind the dirty panes. He desperately wished to be free like that bird and fly away from this creep and back to Yuki. As if on cue, the bird flew away and over an old abandoned billboard sign. Suddenly he got an idea... more tears weld up in his eyes, and he blinked several times.

"As you can see, having a bound boy in my possession allows me many _possibilities_. So if you don't want him returned to you covered in welts and bruises assuming that you do in fact choose him then you shall comply with my demands asap... unless, of course, you don t mind if worse things happen to this rather beautiful boy."

24 moved out of the way so the camera could have a few shots of Shuichi all by himself. The poor singer was still whimpering and feverishly blinking away tears...

_Such a crybaby_. Thought 24. _It's a wonder Yuki-san ever put up with him._

**o---OoO---o**

Everybody tensed as they watched Eiri tremble with anger, fear, and confusion. He took a deep breath and said tightly, "Is that "24"?"

Hiro nodded. He had seen his mug on the news several times, so he instantly recognized him on the film.

"How long since you received that video?"

"We got it about an hour ago."

"And why wasn t I informed about it?" Eiri's voice rose in anger.

This time Tohma spoke up, "I thought that this would be too upsetting for you. In your current condition I was afraid that you would-"

"FUCK YOU TOHMA! FUCK ALL OF YOU! I specifically said that if ANY news WHATSOEVER had come up about Shuichi, that I WAS TO BE ALERTED FUCKING IMMEDIATELY!"

Nobody replied. They knew it was true.

"What is on the rest of that video?"

K motioned for Eiri to sit down, and pressed rewind on the VCR.

Eiri watched the tape over with them. He winced when 24 hit Shuichi with the whip, and felt the overwhelming desire for revenge course through his veins. He urgently wanted to get Shuichi out of there and protect him from that monster.

Eiri clenched his fists, and almost felt like ramming them into the television, but knew that would be futile.

"C-can you tell when this was taped?" Eiri's voice trembled slightly.

"Nope," K answered. "I can't even tell if it's day or night since that overhead lightbulb obscure any natural light that might be in the room"

"Damn it. Damn."

**o---OoO---o**

Several hours later, Tohma finally convinced Eiri to return home and rest, and had even offered to drive him. He ended up staying over for a few hours to talk and keeping him company. Eiri was too overcome with grief to argue.

Meanwhile, Suguru had gotten a call from his parents asking him when he'd be home (they were planning to have guests for dinner), so since he was no longer needed, he decided to call it a night and leave.

Hiro, however, knew he wouldn't be able to sleep until they got some kind - any kind - of lead to Shuichi s whereabouts, so he decided to stay and help analyze the film with K until they came up with something. Unfortunately, both were already extremely tired from the day s events and found it difficult to concentrate.

Nevertheless, Hiro forced himself to pay close attention to every detail of the film, hoping to find even an inkling of a clue.

It was torture for Hiro to watch his best friend being treated so harshly by that bastard, so helpless, and at his mercy. He bitterly thought about what he'd do to this 24 if he ever got his hands on him. Nobody messed with his best friend like this and got away with it. Even though Shuichi wasn t exactly _fragile_, he was still very sensitive emotion-wise.

His mind began to wander. He thought about the time he first met Shuichi, the hyperactive kid with an aspiration to be just like Nittle Grasper. Since Hiro played the guitar, and they seemed to get along alright, they decided to form a band.

They constantly argued over what name would be best. Several names came up, but eventually settled with "Bad Luck", of all names. Shuichi's singing ability evolved from average to that which could rival even Ryuichi Sakuma. Hiro's guitar skills also greatly improved since then.

He remembered all the times he spent with Shuichi, all the fun they had shared, all the times he consoled Shu when he cried, and how - when they were still in school - Shu would always get caught trying to pass notes. Boy did the little singer hate school! Eventually Shuichi set his mind to come up with some new form of communication to talk to Hiro in class without getting caught. After weeks of thinking, and numerous trial-and-error sessions involving various methods that ultimately failed, he finally decided on Morse code. Shuichi actually taught himself the code quite fast, which surprised Hiro; he never imagined that Shu could ever learn something like that so quickly and efficiantly.

His first method was to tap on the desk with a coin or pen, but it began to annoy other students and attract the teacher's attention, so next he tried blinking. They sure had lots of fun communicating that way - no notes for the teacher to read aloud, no way for her to prove that they weren't paying attention since they never made a sound. Yeah, blinking in Morse code sure came in handy! ............Wait. One. Fucking. Second. _Blinking in Morse code....!?!?!?!?!?!_

"K! REWIND THE TAPE RIGHT NOW!!!!"

A bit startled at Hiro's unexpected outburst, K rewound the tape.

Hiro grabbed the remote from him and forwarded just a few seconds. A thought had occured to him.

"Okay, here - look at this clip and tell me what you see."

He played the tape:

///_Suddenly he took two steps towards Shuichi, and struck him hard across his shoulder with the whip._

///_Shu yelped with pain and surprise. Trembling, he cast a fearful glance upwards towards his kidnapper. The man merely smiled and stroked Shu s face, then turned back to the camera._

"Okay, pay extra attention here, K."

///_Tears began to stream down the little singer s face, and he blinked several times to keep the tears from obstructing his vision._

///_"As you can see, having a chained boy in my possession allows me many_ possibilities. _So if you don't want him returned to you covered in welts and bruises assuming that you do choose him then you shall comply with my demands asap... unless, of course, you don t mind if worse things happen to this rather beautiful boy."_

///_24 moved out of the way so the camera could have a few shots of Shuichi all by himself; poor Shu was still whimpering and feverishly blinking away tears..._

"Did you see it?!"

K wondered what hallucination the sleep-depraved guitarist was seeing. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

"Watch it again."

K did, and his face froze. "Well I'll be damned... Hiro, I'm sorry to say this, but that isn't the Shuichi Shindou we all know and love. The Shuichi I know couldn't learn two words in English much less the entire Morse Code alphabet! It's a trap I tell you... 24 plans to lure us away to an undisclosed location to eliminate us! And then-"

"Oh my god K!!!?! Enough with your retarded conspiracy theories! Shuichi isn't as stupid as he appears to be."

K raised an eyebrow, slightly pissed off at having his theories referred to as "retarded".

"...Okay," continued Hiro. "Shuichi isn't _always_ as stupid as he appears to be. He and I would exchange messages this way in highschool - a substitute to passing notes."

K shook his head in disbelief, fighting the urge to ask more questions. Just the very thought of Shuichi displaying this much intelligence was mind-blowing to him. "Ok, I'll bite. Let's go ahead and accept this little revelation as the lead we so badly needed."

But K's words fell on deaf ears. Hiro was too excited by the possiblity of discovering his friend's location, and had grabbed a pen and pad and was rapidly scribbled letters after each set of corresponding blinks. Long blink, short blink, long - brief pause - short, long - pause - long, short - pause - short - pause - short, long, short - pause - long, short, long, long - pause - short, short, short - pause - long, short, short - pause - short, long - pause - long, short, short, short - pause - long, long, long - pause - short, long, short - pause - long, short, short. Shuichi blinked so rapidly Hiro and K nearly had trouble keeping up. K-A-N-E-R-Y-S-D-A-B-O-R-D. K looked down at the letters he just wrote in his own notepad. His hopes of using it as a lead crashed. It was complete nonesense. He was about to express his disappointment to Hiro when he noticed the red-haired guitarist staring intently at the letters.

"Um, Hiro-"

"This isn't what it appears. Shuichi may have learned Morse code, but he never learned how to spell properly."

K rolled his eyes. "Oh that's just fantastic! A possible lead that isn't even spelt correctly"

Ignoring K, Hiro continued. "Shuichi was notorious for spelling words exactly as they sound. "K" could actually be a "C"... in fact, if we replace the "K" for a "C" and that first "E" for an "A", we have the word "CANARY".

"As in a canary bird?" Asked K.

"Perhaps... or it could be a reference to something else."

K sighed. "Well ok you may have hit the bullseye on that one, but how about the rest of the letters? SDABORD is utter nonesense."

"Shuichi often left letters out too."

K looked exasperated. "Misspelled words and missing letters! What's next? A cryptogram?"

Still ignoring him, Hiro stood up and walked towards K's laptop. "Do you mind?" he asked as he opened up the web browser before waiting for a reply. He typed "CANARY" into the google search bar, and came up with about 20,300,000 results. He sifted through the results on the first page. Canary on wikipedia, how to care for a pet canary, canary communication, canary island, canary soda... bingo. "The second word is "SODA", which leaves us with "BORD".

Using the logic he thought Shuichi may have used, K reasoned, "How about the word "board", as in "boarding up your windows"?"

Hiro mused over it. _Canary soda board.... The company that made the Canary soda brand went bankrupt several years ago, so how could this clue help them? Did 24 use to work for them? Did he see a Canary soda can lying around? Were they in the old Canary company building? No that couldn't be possible, it had been demolished by the city a few months ago. How did "board" fit into all of this?_ He swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. He didn't realize how choked up he had gotten over reading what his friend was telling him. The little teen must have been executing some superhuman self control to even think of doing that. _My god, he's so scared. If only this lead to a location - even a general location would be of great help._

K looked at the crestfallen guitarist and tried to console him. "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll figure this out eventually."

"But what if it's too late by then?! We have to do something _now_!" Hiro pounded the coffee table in frustration.

"I know - you're right. But unless we get a lead, we won't be able to do anything until the demands come in. I'm sorry, but the cold hard truth is we can't."

Hiro s breathing became shallow, and he felt his chest hurting. Usually he was very good at keeping his emotions in check, but after everything that had happened over the past week, all the worrying and waiting, he couldn't help it. All the pent up emotions inside of him just begged to be released - and they did.

Tears fell down his cheeks faster than he could wipe them off. He was vaguely aware that K was watching him, but he couldn't help it - the tears just kept falling. He buried his face in his hands, and sobbed.

Hiro's heartbreaking sobs did just that to K - break his heart. Never before had he seen the usually composed guitarist so overcome with emotion.

An almost paternal feeling that he couldn't explain came over him, and he put his arm around the boy. Hiro let his head fall against K's chest, crying harder now. K wrapped his other arm around the teen, and gently rocked him back and forth in an effort to sooth him. He rested his cheek on top of Hiro's head, wishing there was more he could do.

Hiro hugged K tightly, trying to get a hold of his emotions. Suddenly, it occured to him. Board. _Bill_board.

**END EPISODE 9**

(In the next episode of More Precious than Gold: Things start heating up! 24's instructions arrive, and it is now time for big decisions and large scale operations!)

**Author's Notes:** (5/17/09) Hello again!!! :D Yeah I know - I have no right to act cheery after I fail to update my story for several months. However, I did managed to complete my first two semesters of college between the time I finished my last chapter and now. I'm really sorry about not updating during that time though... I tend to be lazy and procrastinate a lot, especially if I have other things on my plate.... However, when I started writing fanfiction I made a promise to myself that I would always finish whatever story I began writing, cuz few things are more annoying than reading a good fanfiction story that the author never finishes. I don't want to be that author. I plan to put up the remaining chapters of this story before I begin classes for summer semester late this month, so look for them okay? ^^ Btw, if you want to know what I'm up to, you can look at my myspace or facebook... I'll try to add the links in my profile page soon. Oh, and I don't use LiveJ anymore cuz I rarely update it.

**Notes about the 24 character:** Yes, 24 is an OC (original character). The name 24 is just some random number I thought up. Heck, I don t even know _why_ I picked that particular number! In fact, while I was still working on the draft, I considered changing it to something more... sinister sounding, ya know? ...but ended up forgetting to do so :-p And no, I didn't name him after that TV show! Someone once made a comment about that so I figured I should set the record straight. I've never even watched 24 so I haven't the slightest clue what it's about.


	10. Eiri Yuki the Exnovelist!

**oO--oOo--Oo**

**Episode 10: The Final Build-up of Tension**

An un-identified sound awoke Eiri from his troubled sleep. Slowly, he sat up in bed, unable to shake the images of the dream from his head. Actually, it was more of a nightmare than a dream. Ever since he saw that damned video he couldnt get the image of that bastard hitting _his_ Shuichi as if he was some random piece of worthless trash out of his head. Like a lab-rat trapped in a maze without an exit, it was beginning to drive him mad.

Angrily, he clenched his fists. Silent rage slowly overcoming whatever sanity he had left in him. He just _had_ to do something anything to free his baby from that atrocious monster, but the devastating question that could not be overlooked was what? What could he possibly do? He had absolutely no idea where Shuichi was being held, nor did he have the faintest clue how to go about finding a missing person. Normally the reticent novelist would simply leave such a task to the police, but this was different. This was _Shuichi_ we're talking about.

He sparked up a cigarette in an attempt to cool off and clear his head, but it wasn't working. Not that smoking ever really helped him think, but it _did_ - as a rule - help him unruffle his feathers.

Still not feeling much better, Eiri stood up, pulled on some clothes and sat on his bed, trying to cope with his restless desire to do something. He still wasn't sure what he could possibly do, if anything at all, but it sure as hell wasn't to go back to sleep - not that he could sleep anymore right now anyways. The pain in his ribs vaguely reminded him of his injury, but he didn't care. His own well-being was not important to him.

Eiri walked out of his bedroom, and half expected to see Tohma asleep on his couch where he had left him the other night, but saw no one. A note on his kitchen counter said that he had gotten a call and went to the studio. He also said for Eiri to get as much rest as he could. Of course he would say that. Tohma always said stuff like that even though he knew full well that Eiri would do whatever the hell he wanted anyway, regardless of what was asked of him.

Not seeing anything particularly interesting to do in his apartment, he decided to go for a short walk, hoping the fresh air would clear his mind. Eiri slipped on a coat and shoes, and was just about to open the door, when he noticed the white corner of an envelope peeking in between the door and the wall.

Opening the door caused the envelope to fall. Catching it in midair, Eiri examined the front. No return address big surprise there. He tore it open without thinking, but already had a pretty good idea of who had sent it. His eyes flew over the contents - he was right on the mark. Time to call Tohma and the others.

**o---OoO---o**

Once everyone was assembled in Tohma's office at N-G, Eiri showed them the letter he had just received. Inside were 24s demands, and they contained some pretty damned specific directions on how Eiri was to quit his career as an author for good. At least, if he wanted Shuichi back that is. If not, than his instructions were to simply do nothing.

Details included a pre-mature cancelation of the contract he held with his publishing company (to permanently end his career), arranging a press conference (to publicly announce his leave), and other stuff that was otherwise permanent. In other words, after this Eiri Yuki would no longer be a writer, neither professionally nor occasionally. Even if he did try to write again, his work could never get published since other publishing companies would view his last breach of contract as too irresponsible, and would see him as untrustworthy and irresolute enough to keep a contract.

Oh, Eiri-san, Im so sorry about this. But I swear, I _will_ find a way to allow you to keep your vocation _and_ help you get Shuichi-kun back-

"Exactly!" K interrupted, "In fact, I have the perfect idea how to-"

"No," Eiri said, much to everyones surprise. He stood rigidly, his voice wavering ever so slightly. "No, I-I'll just quit. If it means that I'll get Shuichi back, than I'll quit. For good. I dont want to put him in any more danger." He turned to face K. "And following up with one of your schemes would just put him at a higher risk.

Everyone stared at him in shock. Was Eiri high on something? Had he had too much to drink? But as they looked closer, they saw the glistening of tears in his unmistakably sober eyes, clearly showing that he was dead serious.

Tohma swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. He never actually realized just how _serious_ Eiri was about Shuichi. He didn't realize just how much Eiri cared about him... enough to choose him over his career.

K cleared his throat, drawing the attention back to himself, "I don't think that'll work, Yuki. I have a hunch that he will kill Shuichi regardless of your decision."

_What a way to give him hope._ thought Suguru blandly.

"Forgive me for not trusting your brilliance, K, but I think you're wrong. Whoever this "24" is, I think he's simply jealous of me and only wants me to quit. Also, if your plan goes wrong then Shuichi's life will be on my hands for going along with it, and I will not have that. If Shuichi is killed than I might as well be dead too. I am going to follow 24's instructions and officially end my career for good. We'll start with that press conference.

K furrowed his brow and then smirked ever so slightly, however, it left his face so suddenly that it was hard to tell if it was even there to begin with. He walked up next to Eiri and put an arm around his shoulders. "Yuki. If it's a press conference you want, then it's a press conference you get. Just leave everything to me and _nothing will go wrong_." Eiri's eyes narrowed in deep suspicion, but K suddenly grabbed both his shoulders and looked him square in the eye. "Yuki-san, I might not love Shuichi like you do, but if he dies then I'll be out of a job for a while, and this is my best paying job yet. Trust me - I swear I am only going to set up a press conference for you and nothing more. Things like this need to be done correctly, and I know how to do it. So just trust me. Okay?"

Eiri sighed. "Ok fine. But you had better keep your word K."

K led Eiri out of the room, looked over his shoulder, and winked.

**o---OoO---o**

After escorting Eiri back to his car, K returned to the office.

"I would like to assist and make the necessary phone calls." Tohma began, but K shook his head.

"No. There won't be anything for you to do in this case Mr. President. Just let me handle things this time okay? I'll keep you posted."

Slightly miffed, Tohma pursed his lips and was about to say something, but changed his mind and left.

Suguru checked his wrist watch, "I need to be getting home now, but call if you need any help."

"Will do kid." K responded.

After almost everyone had left the room, K stood silenty with his arms folded, and Hiro (the only other person in the room) looked at him skeptically.

"You're not just going to set up a regular press conference are you?"

K smiled. "Hiro, for once I'll be needing some help, and you're the only one I trust to help. Tohma is too full of himself and might try doing things his own way, and Suguru's just a kid. As for Eiri, he's too overcome with emotion to think properly and I need someone in their right mind on my team. So that's where you come in!" K walked over to Hiro and dramatically looked both ways before leaning in towards Hiro to whisper something in his ear. Hiro shuddered as he felt K's warm breath on his ear, but did an excellent job of staying composed. When K finished speaking, he stepped away and said, "So you see? All we'll be doing is setting up a press conference so Eiri can broadcast his news."

"Just one question," Asked Hiro, How _exactly_ are you going to pull something of that scale off?

K merely winked and gestured to the Magnum .44 in his shoulder holster. Hiro groaned in understanding.

**o---OoO---o**

"Ladies and gentlemen, my name is - as you all know - Eiri Yuki. My profession is writing romance novels for the ever growing female population of Japan, as well as the many countries my books have been sent abroad too. And as you also know, I'm pretty damn good at what I do."

Eiri let his eyes glaze over the crowd. He was a little pleased that he didn't have to organize this entire pandemonium by himself, but wondered if perhaps it would have been better to do it himself... He still didn't have absolute trust in that trigger-happy American. Upon arrival he kept looking out for something that might tell him that K had not kept his word, but so far everything was exactly as he expected it to be. The only thing that was off was that he didn't recognize most of the reporters, which was odd because he could of sworn he had met them all at one time or another.

Earlier that day, K had given him a script to read saying that it would look more legitimate if he knew what he was going to say rather than stutter through the interview. The script actually went into quite a bit of detail, right down to how to answer each of the reporters questions, which K somehow already knew. The script also called for him to put on a slight act as cold and emotionless, but in Eiri's case this was less of acting and more like his usual personality anyway. K had also claimed to have gone ahead and canceled his career contracts - he even produced some official-looking papers from the publisher telling him in legal terms that his contract was officially over. Eiri had assumed that only he could cancel his own contracts, and was very surprised when he found out K had done it for him. He never thought he'd see the day when his contract would officially end, and he looked at the papers in an almost pained way after it hit him that he wouldn't be writing anymore. But before he had time to look over the papers in any amount of detail, K led him up to the podium to begin his speech.

Eiri continued speaking. "This conference has been called so I could announce publicly and officially that I will be, as of now, quitting permanently." He gazed into the cameras and pleaded with his eyes that the kidnapper release Shuichi unharmed. "I know this is a breach of my contract with my publishing company, and I offer no excuses. I have my reasons though, reasons that need not be any of your concern..."

**o---OoO---o**

After nearly an hour, Eiri finally finished his speech. Half of which was dedicated to a Q & A session with several of the reporters.

Now the conference room was empty, all the reporters and other media personnel having left immediately after the Q&A session.

Eiri, Tohma, Hiro, Suguru, Tatsuha, Sakano, and K were all seated at a table near the edge of the room, with K sitting at the head.

"I have an announcement to make!"

"I hope you are planning on explaining this to us." Said a very cross Eiri. He was beginning to get extremely suspicious of K's "press conference". Plus, he also wanted to know why he didn't recognize 96% of the reporters. He thought he had seen them all at least once. What was going on?

"Don't worry, ladies and gents. K began.

_...ladies_? Everyone thought.

I've called you all here to let you in on my plan so you could assist. K continued. If I could do it all myself, than I most certainly would, but since I have not yet mastered the science of cloning, I will need others to help. Also, I can't call in any of the authorities until the very end, otherwise we may tip of 24.

Suguru sweat-dropped as the thought of a dozen K-clones running around N-G filled his head. He quickly shook his head; _not_ something hed wanna end up having nightmares about.

Eiri breathed in and out very slowly in an attempt to contain his anger. "I thought you were just going to organize a press conference," He stood up and began walking towards the head of the table with a menacing look on his face. "you FUCKING SAID YOU WOULDN'T DO ANY OF YOUR SCHEMES!!!"

K stayed where he was and sighed - he knew how to deal with difficult people. "Listen Yuki," he began calmly. "I said that I would organize a press conference and nothing more, and that's what I did. I never explicitly said that I would not use it as part of my "scheme". I have reason to believe that 24 will indeed kill Shuichi regardless of your decision. He's a serial killer for god's sake! He _loves_ to kill. I do not think he gives a rat's ass about any promises on his part, and like I told you before, I have my own reasons for not wanting Shuichi dead. So _trust me goddammit_."

Eiri grudgingly sat back down and listened as K pulled up several intricately drawn charts and graphs, and explained his master plan - in it's entirety - and what was expected of each of them, as well as what his calculated outcome of the situation was. After he finished, everyone was pumped and more than ready to take on his part of the job.

"So, are you all ready?" K said.

"Yes!" they all said in unison. "For Shuichi!"

**o---OoO---o**

It had been a few days since 24 had filmed Shuichi in that room. At least, it _felt_ like a few days Shuichi had since lost all track of time. He didnt even know what day it was, or even if it was indeed daytime. There were no windows in the room where Shuichi was kept, and he hadnt seen any clocks, calendars, or any other method of time-telling since he had arrived. The only window he had seen was in that room where 24 had filmed him, but that was some time ago. He wondered if 24 had done that on purpose. If that purpose had been to drive poor Shu crazy, it sure as hell was working. Going long periods of time without knowing the time or whether it is day or night is harder than it seems.

Something else that contributed to the strawberry-haired vocalists unease was 24s rather cordial and kind treatment towards him. He always gave Shu plenty of food and water and always allowed access to the bathroom. He was even allowed to roam freely in a small bedroom-like room. Albeit the room resembled a dungeon, but it was better than any alternatives that Shuichi had conjured up in his mind. An old pine shelf in the corner held a few random books which Shu made good use of during the several hours that 24 was gone. They helped to take his mind of his current situation as well as make time pass. He had given up trying to escape long ago, since the only exit was through a single door a door made of 7 inches of solid oak and reinforced steel with three bolted locks on the other side.

Occasionally 24 would come by to talk, mostly about current world news events. On one of these visits, 24 had told him about the demands he had made to Eiri. Shuichi was crestfallen. He was positive that Eiri would _never_ give up something as precious as his career, and _especially_ not all for him. _No, he'd never do that. I was never all that important to him in the first place, so how could I possibly ever complete with something like his career?_

"Yes, thats right. Today is the day Eiri Yuki finally makes the ultimate choice the day that he _finally_ chooses his gold. At 6:00 tonight, Ill let you come see the news with me and we'll both find out together what Yuki-sans gold really is. If we see his stupid mug on the screen, well know that he has chosen you. If not, than well know that he has made the most logical choice and decided to keep his job. A smug look crossed 24s face. He looked down at his wristwatch. In exactly 2 hours and 11 minutes, well _finally_ have our answer. Oh, the suspense is killing me! He chuckled menacingly and left the room.

**o---OoO---o**

**6:03pm.**

Shuichi sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the chair 24 sat in. In front of them sat a little 13 inch television that blared its light into the dark room. The 6 o clock news had just started, and the news anchor was giving a brief summary of the upcoming news stories.

The TV was old, and so was its antenna. Occasionally 24 would have to get up and bang it on the side to clear up the static that frequently overtook it.

As if on cue, another burst of black and white static filled the screen, so 24 once again got up and banged it. Nothing happened. Cursing, he banged it again, this time with satisfactory results. In fact, not only did the picture come back, but it was even clearer than usual. Smiling contently, 24 sat back down again.

"...more about the newly recovered jewels from the heist of a few months ago - did the police actually find the precious gems, or were they simply cheap rhinestones? We'll have the interview of the jeweler who inspected the gems later. Also coming up, are school uniforms too "uniform" for our children? Plus, what will be the outcome of the infamous lawsuit everyone's talking about "Sushi vs. Ignorant Tourist" filed by a Canadian tourist who claims, as you all know, that he wasn't informed by the restaurant's waiter that sushi is actually "uncooked" fish... and when we return," continued the newscaster "We will have our hottest story: Eiri Yuki quits? Is romance getting out of style? An hour long conference featuring Japans hottest author. All this and more coming up! So stay tuned..."

Some more brief static, and than it cut to commercial.

Shuichi froze. Did he just hear what he thought he heard? Did he actually hear that the great Eiri Yuki was _quitting_?!?! When he finally regained his ability to move, his jaw dropped and his breathing quickened. Eiri was quitting. He was actually quitting and for him!

He cautiously glanced up at 24, wondering what his kidnapper was thinking.

He actually looked pleased. Too pleased.

Shus attention returned back to the television once the news was back. Several choice snippets of the interview were shown, along with the most interesting of the Q&A segments. At the end, Eiri displayed some papers for the audience. They were official documents that proved he was quitting. No turning back now.

24 laughed. He laughed so hard, he nearly fell to the floor. Shu looked at him, suddenly fearful. His insane laughter turned sinister and he turned his attention to Shuichi. "Please come with me."

With no choice but to obey, Shu followed.

24 lead him to the room where he had first filmed him - the room with the chair chained to the floor. 24 motioned for him to sit down, and Shuichi did so, afraid that defiance could be painful. He sat in the chair and allowed himself to be chained to it again, wondering what would happen this time.

"Do you know who I am?"

Shuichi shook his head.

"I am a recent escapee from North Hill Asylum. Do you know what kind of place that is?"

Although he wasnt exactly sure, he did remembered hearing from someone that it was a place insane criminals went to, but was that correct? Although this person was obviously a criminal, is demeanor wasn't exactly insane... was it? He had never met an insane person before so it is not like he had someone to compare 24 to.

"Yes, Shuichi-kun," he said as if reading his thoughts, "It's a place where the criminally insane go for the rest of their mortal lives. But, I am no ordinary criminal. They have underestimated me for the last time. I escaped after a year of incarceration to complete some unfinished business. And now that it has been taken care of, I will take care of you and be on my way. I am what is known as a genius, and I am very good with disguises, so I'll have absolutely no trouble blending in with the locals and living a normal _free_ life."

"Um, what business are you talking about?" Shuichi asked timidly.

"Remember that press conference we just saw? _That_ was my goal. To get him to lose that damned job."

"But why?"

"I would explain, but it would take far too long. I would like to be through with you as soon as I can."

"Through with me? You mean that youre gonna let me go now?" his voice was hopeful.

A chuckle escaped from 24's lips, "No, my dear boy. Think about it - why would I chain you to this chair again if I was simply going to let you go? And why would I let you go back to him? He obviously loves you more than his career, so why should I give you back to that bastard? No, I plan to kill you. I am going to kill you in the exact same manner I killed all those other people - and then I shall let him find you. That will be the icing on the cake for him to find you dead!"

Shuichi was shocked! He could not believe what he was hearing. "B-but he just gave up his entire lifes work just for me! He followed all your fucking orders just like you had wanted him too, you said that you'd give me back to him if he quit, and he did! Why won't you keep your word?!?!"

24 did not answer, but instead held up a large, sharp knife, and carefully scrutinized its curved blade. "I usually do not bother conversing with my prey before killing them, but since you are a special case, meaning that you are the one Yuki chose over his career, I think you have the right to know why I am about to take your life. Listen closely boy, because it will be the last words you shall ever hear."

**END EPISODE 10**

(In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold": 24 finally gives an explanation for all his madness! What on earth was the origin to the monster we know as 24??? And what will happen once he's finished telling his tale to Shuichi??? The only way to find out is to stay tuned for the next chapter of More Precious Than Gold!!!)

**Authors Notes**  
Ok - I'm not making any more promises about when I plan to update next because apparently I don't keep them :P. Also, in my original story I simply wrote out a summary of the events in 24's life leading up to his quest for revenge, but I decided to draw it out into a more dramatic story and put it in a chapter of its own. Plus, I completely changed his explanation because the initial one _sucked_. If I do this right, there should only be two more chapters until the end of the story so I hope you stay tuned! ^^


	11. Behind 24 lay Rafael Bashkir

**oO--oOo--Oo**

**Episode 11:** **Behind 24 lay Rafael Bashkir**

"My name is Rafael Bashkir. I am 35 years old, married for 8 years, and have two 7-year-old daughters. My home country is Russia. My field of profession is-"

"That is enough for now, Mr. Bashkir. At the sound of my voice, you will come back to full consciousness You are returning to consciousness You are waking up."

Rafael Bashkir could hear the voice of his psychologist somewhere off in the distance. He couldn t quite pinpoint it, but it was forcing its way into his subconscious mind and slowly pulling him into awareness. Very slowly, he opened his eyes.

"Wha-"

"You did well, sir. All you talked about while in the subconscious state was merely basic information about yourself. I believe that if you continue taking your medication and completing your daily meditation sessions, the frequency of your mad desires will continue to decrease." The psychologist played back the tape-recorded ramblings. Rafael sighed in relief.

"Can you explain again what happens after you put me in a subconscious state?"

The doctor folded his arms and sat on the corner of his desk. "While under my hypnosis, your mind goes into a deep subconscious state, similar to the state you are in while sleeping. In this state, the mind is very open to suggestion. That is why a sleepwalker who is told to return to bed will generally obey without hesitation. Anyway, I switch on this tape-recorder and ask you to talk about yourself; who you are, where you are from, and how you occupy your time. When you first started seeing me, you displayed confusion over your identity, and would speak passionately about killing while giving the most horrendous details, which I am sure I need not repeat. I had never seen such a case as yours in all my years of work. I realized your crazed desires were the root of your psychotic state. After prescribing you medicine and a daily meditative routine of clearing the mind, I periodically checked on your progress using the hypnosis method. The first few days offered no change, but eventually I began to see a gradual reduction of the identity confusion and violent tendencies. Now I believe you have improved enough to begin living quite the normal life. However, you must never neglect taking your medication. Do you have any more questions?"

"Yes I do. Will I ever be able to get off this medication?"

"Unfortunately, the answer to that is more likely a no. he sighed. It is very rare for patients with delusional disorder to ever fully recover, but many who are consistent with taking their medication or psychotherapy will experience near full relief from the symptoms, such as with you. I suggest to never cease taking your medication or your twice-monthly visits, and try to avoid very stressful, dangerous, or otherwise unhealthy situations. I do not care how good you feel, or how much you think you have recovered, because if you stop with your treatments than your symptoms might come back full-force."

"That is all right. As long as I can function normally and not be a hazard towards my family, then I am content."

"Okay, Mr. Bashkir," Said the doctor as he led him out of the room. "I will be seeing you exactly two weeks from today. Take care until then."

"Thank you, Doctor Hamasaki."

**o---OoO---o**

"Good evening Manami."

"Hello honey! How was work?"

"It went good as usual."

Rafael hated lying to his wife, but he was too ashamed of his condition to admit to her that twice a month he would take a day off from work to see his psychiatrist. He made a vow that those would be the only lies he ever told her. She was the most important person in his life, besides their daughters, and he wanted nothing more than to be her everything. He sat down at the kitchen table after removing his coat and washing his hands, and watched his beautiful petite wife as she prepared the evening meal. He let his mind wander as the sound of the kitchen knife tapped the counter as she cut carrots and potatoes for the stew. He remembered when he began courting her. She was the sweetest and most charming woman he had ever met. They had originally met while working together in a factory, and their friendship soon grew into love. She was a transfer student from Japan, and worked part time to pay for her schooling. He married her three years later, and not long afterwards they had a set of twins. He remembered that up until a few months ago, his secret life had been hell, and he marveled at how well he was able to hide it. If Manami ever knew what he obsessed about in his spare time, she might have turned her back years ago and he would never have seen her again. His obsessions were like an inner-demon, constantly plaguing his thoughts. He never spoke about them, because from a very young age he learned that killing was wrong, and the way he obsessed about it would be viewed as insane.

He did not have much difficulty keeping it a secret from people in general, but his parents began suspecting something was not right about their son after unintentionally stumbling across the skinned carcasses of various animals, including some pets that had gone missing in the neighborhood recently. Rafael fervently denied any involvement, but his parents still suspected. Since then Rafael was extremely careful about when and where he did these things, and got better at hiding the evidence. No one knew, and eventually his parents forgot their suspicions altogether. Even though he had the outward appearance of a perfectly normal boy, albeit one with abnormally calm, calculating demeaner and very high grades, his inner demons would still plague his mind. Sometimes he would imagine himself doing it to a classmate, and had almost ended up believing that this one particular boy completely deserved it. Instead he took it out on a stray dog he found. As he skinned the animal alive, its screams piercing the still surroundings, it almost felt therapeutic, as if he was engaged in a perfectly normal and calming activity such as sewing or taking a stroll. All this changed after he met Manami. Right from the get-go he was sure that she at least had a crush on him, and after she expressed some interest after their initial meeting, he knew his thoughts were confirmed, and he decided to get into a relationship with her. Sometimes as they would sit side-by-side on one of the rooftops while watching the sunset, and he would think about what it would be like to skin her. _How would her screams sound? She needed to be skinned, didn't she? No I want her alive._ He would tell himself. _I love her and she loves me, so I must protect her._

After marrying her, thoughts of skinning her would plague his mind, and even though he felt that it would almost be good for her, the thoughts began to scare him and he went to a psychiatrist for help. At first he was skeptical and thought that all he would do is put him on some heavy medications that would keep him from thinking straight, but decided to give it a shot anyway. Afterall, could his situation get any worse? The treatment ended up working, slowly, but surely, and he realized for the first time just how delusional he really was. It was like seeing things clearly for the first time, and his urges to engage in such acts diminished greatly as a result. For the first time in his life, he was truly happy, and he wanted to make the most out of it. Rafael was snapped out of his revere by the sound of his daughters running into the kitchen.

"Daddy! Daddy!" They both shouted in unison. Their mother found it amusing to dress them up to look exactly the same, so when they stood on either side of their father, it was like looking at a mirror image of one of them. "Come play daddy! See my dolly!" Rafael gently pulled their heads close to his and kissed their foreheads. "Daddy is tired right now, okay? But I will play with you tomorrow since I am off from work."

"Yay!" The girls shouted and took off back to their room.

Rafael smiled as his daughters ran off. His gaze turned back to his wife, and from the corner of his eye he noticed a book on the table, a red ribbon used as a bookmark hung over the side. He picked it up and read the title "Running Rivers" by Eiri Yuki. "Another book, honey? I thought you just bought one last week?"

Manami giggled, "I know, but I simple couldn't pass this one up! It's by my favorite author from my home country! I've been waiting months for it to be released here."

Rafael chuckled and put the book back down. His wife's thirst for romance novels was really unquenchable.

**o---OoO---o**

"But Barbie doesn't like that dress Tami!"

"Yes she does, if you don't like it then give it to me!"

"Svetlana, Tamiko," Rafael scolded his daughters. It was the following morning, and he was reading the morning paper with some coffee while watching his daughters play. "Play nicely with each other or your mother will take away your dolls."

"We're sorry daddy."

"That's alright. Perhaps you should play with your mother some time - afterall she used to make clothes when she was younger, and might even be able to show you how to make clothes for your dolls!"

"No." Answered Svetlana simply, and resumed her play.

The answer surprised Rafael - he was expecting them both to show at least a little excitement. "Why the lack of interest? I thought you wanted more doll clothes?"

"Mommy doesn't have lots of time... mommy likes the traveler."

Rafael put his paper down. "What traveler?"

"A man who travels everywhere. Mommy says he visits a lot because he needs stuff." Said Svetlana matter-of-factly while continuing to play. Rafael was confused. His wife generally made a brief mention of any visitors that happened to stop by, but never once has she mentioned a traveler before... so what were his daughters talking about?

"Tell me more about this traveler, honey." He asked.

"The girls continued playing, and didn't appear concerned. "He visits sometimes," Said Svetlana. "But mommy makes us play outside," Said Tamiko. "Mommy says we will bother him if we play inside." Interrupted Svetlana.

Deeply curious, he went into the house to ask his wife about it.

**o---OoO---o**

"A traveler? Oh they must be referring to James. He's an American tourist who stopped by once to ask for directions to the bank."

"Oh, so you are already on first-name terms with him?"

"N-no he just introduced himself as James and I never bothered to ask for his last name." She answered flustered.

Rafael pretended not to notice her reddened face, and didn t push the matter. That night however, his dreams were plagued with nightmares of Minami leaving him. Minami with some stranger. Minami taking the girls and running away. Minami openly kissing another man in front of him even after he awoke, those thoughts wouldn t leave his head. He tried to ignore them, but they wouldn t leave. Plus, he felt his urges begin to return it was as if his fear of Minami's infidelity was fueling his urges to kill. He almost went straight to his psychiatrist to tell him of the problem, but thought that perhaps his fears were valid. _Afterall, was it not natural to wonder if your spouse was being true to you after something like this?_ He didn't ask her about it anymore, and felt that doing so would be futile. Instead, he felt that taking care of things himself was the best course of action. _It was perfectly natural... right?  
_  
One morning he woke up and was preparing his coffee before work when he heard the family dog whine at his feet to fill his food bowl. The rest of the family was still asleep... He closed his eyes and tried to imagine a blank space. He could not. The fear of his wife's infidelity was throwing gasoline onto his desire to kill..._ it was only natural, wasn't it? Humans and animals will all die eventually, and this was merely helping them. It was good. No, it wasn't... yes, it was._

He couldn t take it anymore.

He grabbed the dog by its scruff, grabbed a random kitchen knife and tossed the dog into his car. Instead of driving to work, he took a detour and drove deep into the forest where he was sure no one would see or hear anything. He looked back and saw the dog cowering in the corner, as if able to sense the insanity contained within his master. Rafael grabbed the dog and the knife, and walked a little ways until he was in a small clearing. He held the poor, struggling animal on the ground, and gently ran the edge along its neck. Almost immediately, that same therapeutic feeling of having complete power over a life and killing it in this manner was coming back to him. It was very peaceful. It was almost like he was doing a favor to humanity by killing one of its creatures. _This dog is living miserably anyway, so it is okay to kill it, isn't it?_ The dog whimpered and struggled pointlessly. Then Rafael slipped the blade into its skin and began slicing away, skinning the dog alive. The dog screamed and yelped until it was too weak to do so anymore. By the time Rafael was done, he was covered in blood. All of a sudden he was afraid. _Oh my god, what have I done?!_ But he began slipping back into his killer state of mind. _No, I was doing a good thing. This dog is better off. I'm better off. Everyone is better off. I am a good person for doing this._ Rafael grabbed his head and fell to the ground, unable to fight his urges. Then, he suddenly got up, the very picture of composure, and buried the body of his dog and its skin. The dog was still alive (just barely), but would be dead soon anyway from blood-loss and shock. He then returned to his vehicle and started driving. He did not know where to go. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized there would be trouble if he was seen with a bloodstained shirt. He drove to his house, and felt a distant feeling of relief after seeing that his wife and daughters were not home. They had probably gone into town for groceries and errands. He quickly threw his ruined clothing into the trash and took a shower. During his shower, he felt more and more at ease with himself. In the back of his mind, he knew he needed to see his psychologist immediately, but the part of his mind that was in control was saying no. _I am perfectly ok there is absolutely nothing wrong with me, and therefore no reason to see that man. Why was I seeing him in the first place anyway? Why? I was mistaken. I am okay._

As he was towling off, he bumped into the bathroom shelf and knocked several items onto the floor. He cursed, and began picking them up. One of them was the book from the kitchen. It had landed on it's front, and a profile picture of the handsome author looked back at him from the rear cover. Flaxen hair, golden eyes, flawless skin... suddenly the urge to run a knife through this skin ran through his mind. He recalled his wife mentioning this Yuki person as being her favorite author. The way she giggled when she said it bothered him. His jealousy of a man he had previously never even heard of coursed through his veins. _No, Manami is mine. She will love no one but ME!_

When he finished in the bathroom he went to the secret place where he stored his medication, and threw it all away.

**o---OoO---o**

The week passed without incident. He was feeling like his old self again (his old _killer_ self), and would satisfy his urges by finding random animals and repeating what he did to his dog. This time, he secretly bought a plastic coverall for his clothing, and kept water and rags stored in his vehicle to take care of any bloodstains that made it past the cover. He felt like he was in control again. He was still plagued by thoughts of killing his wife, but that last bit of sanity in the corners of his mind was begging his irrational side not to kill her. However, after that week, the girls mentioned the traveler once more. This was the last straw. Rafael made the decision to take care of this supposed traveler once and for all. His wife belonged to him and only him, and this traveler needed to die. _It would be a good thing._ He knew that for a fact. _A good thing..._

**o---OoO---o**

"Boss, if you don't mind, I'd like to take a week off from work. I have some important family matters to take care of which require a huge part of my time."

"Hey now listen Bashkir. I like you you are a good worker, and that is something we cannot do without. But times are tough and the company cannot afford to be giving employees time off right now... even I am working overtime in order to make sure things keep running smoothly. But since you are such a good guy, I will make you a deal if you agree to work 4 hours overtime every day for a month after you get back, AND I think the reason for your leave is good enough, then I will give you the time off."

"My reasons are personal..."

"Well, my business is personal and you are a part of it. So let's hear it. How bad could it be?"

"You see, my wife is pregnant again and just got the flu - I need to take care of her and the girls until her aunt comes over next week to take over."

"Ok say no more - I understand. Just be sure you get back when you say you will. I will have one of the other guys take over part of your shift while you are gone he will be the one you relieve when you get back."

"Thank you for your understanding, sir."

Rafael walked out of his boss's office with a feeling of satisfaction. With that out of the way, he could go about his plans much easier. What he had not told his boss, however, was that he would not _be_ returning to work...

**o---OoO---o**

It had been six and a half uneventful days since Rafael had made the arrangement with his boss. His wife still had no idea that the place he went every morning was not work, but instead was watching the house intently. Every morning he drove 5 miles away and parked his car in the lot of an old hotel no one would notice a vehicle parked there for hours. Then he would jog back to a place near the house where no one could see him, but gave him a perfect view. No one would be able to approach the house without him seeing... unless they jumped over the back fence, but he figured the traveler would not go through that much trouble if he was certain the husband of his current affair was busy at work. Rafael remained very patient somehow, it was very easy to do so. He rarely moved from his position, and when he did it was only to take a piss or keep from getting cramped up. Though he was normally very calm, he was beginning to get worried if this traveler guy didn t show up by the time his days off were up, he would not get another chance to catch him for at least a month! He just HAD to come by today!

Just then, as if luck finally decided to side with him, he saw a man approach the house. He was a tall man, about his height, and wore a non-descript khakis pants and a white shirt. Rafael crouched down, waiting in anticipation. However, the man continued walking past the house... Rafael sighed apparently his luck had run out for the day. Just then, his wife cracked open the door! She stepped outside and re-arranged her flower pots, but he could see that she was discreetly checking to make sure no one was watching. After seeing the coast was clear, she ran down the steps and into the arms of the stranger! Rafael froze. He had imagined his wife cheating on him, but actually seeing it was a completely different matter. He wanted to rush down right then, but used all his self-control to stay still. It was not yet the time his wife could still claim this man was simply a distant relative of hers or a family friend... which was a bit odd since she was from Japan and not here. Regardless, he stayed where he was and watched as Manami quickly rushed the stranger into the house. But before that, he saw his daughters go out to play in the back yard. He waited 15 minutes, and then he snuck up to the house and walked to the side, careful not to let his daughters see him. He peered into the bedroom window only to see the shade was down, so he pressed his ear against the window and heard the unmistakable sounds of love making. He felt himself freeze again, but this time out of sheer feral fury. He felt his blood boil and it rushed to his head. His whole body began to quiver, and he felt his hand reach into his pockets for his house keys. Just as suddenly though, he calmed down completely. Not even he could understand it. He walked casually to the front of the house and in through the front door it was not locked. He could hear his wife moaning from the entry way. Her voice getting louder as he approached their bedroom. He went into his study which was down the hall from the bedroom, and crouched down near his desk to pop open a secret compartment underneath it. Inside was a long, expensive knife with an ornately designed handle. He admired the sharp, steel blade for a few seconds, thoughts of how much his wife needed to die flooding his mind. It completely took him over, and clouded his mind. His vision was no longer clear - his head rushed with blood and anger. He walked slowly to the bedroom, the door slightly ajar. He waited there a few seconds, and then slowly opened it so that he would not alert them too easily.

He rushed in, letting the anger and craziness drive him. He roared and plunged the knife into the travelers head, pulled it out, and viciously shoved the body away. His wife froze in terror, not even able to scream. She raised her arm in defense when she saw her husband go towards her. He grabbed her arm and got behind her, putting her in a choke hold. She struggled, but he was very strong. He took a belt from his drawer and firmly fastened her arms behind her back. Then he held her firmly, and gently brushed the tip of the blade against her chest. She screamed. Then he put the blade near flush with her skin, and began to cut. He started with her arms, and then continued down her chest and stomach. Her legs came next. He listened to her scream, letting it fill him with the greatest sense of peace he ever felt. This was perfect she had needed to be skinned for years, and now he was finally doing it. By the time he was done, she had lost most of her blood, but was still conscious and moaning. He did not feel like stopping though and began stabbing her. Twenty-four times he counted. Once he was done, he let her limp body fall to the floor. Just then the light rustle of clothing broke the silence. Rafael turned around and saw his two daughters each holding each other in sheer terror. Neither could quite understand what had happened, but knew it was something horrible.

Rafael stood up, and walked slowly towards them. His footsteps echoed almost eerily in the room. The girls whimpered and cowered, too afraid to move. He grabbed them, yanked them all the way inside the room, shut the door, and sat down in front of it. There was no escape for them now. He grabbed Tamiko and began skinning her. Svetlana screamed as she saw the horrible thing being done to her sister. The poor girl did not know what to do - her mother was covered in blood and not moving, and her sister was screaming her lungs out. Despite her young age, she understood that it was her father who was causing their suffering.

As Rafael admired his daughter's perfect, flawless skin as the blood streaked down over it. The little girl screamed and screamed until her voice began to grow weaker. Tamiko was losing too much blood, and was beginning to feel faint. Finally, she fainted before Rafael could finish the job, but he did not care - he wanted to continue. He was so caught up in his work that he forgot Svetlana was still in the room. She knew she was in danger and that she had to get away. Svetlana looked around - the door was blocked by her father, but the window was available... She glanced at her father, and saw he seemed completely unaware of her existence. By then Tamiko had stopped screaming, but was now drenched in blood. Svetlana ran to the window and tried to lift it it would not budge. So she banged on it, fearfully glancing back at her father, but he was too engrossed to notice. So she grabbed a small vase, and using both hands, pounded it against the window it broke, and she used the remaining parts of the vase to break the hole big enough to climb out of. She cut herself quite badly in the process, but kept going out of sheer terror. Finally a jagged hole was created and she went through.

After several more minutes, Rafael finished. His daughter was still no longer moving or screaming. Not even a whimper escaped her lips. He put his bloody hand on her wrist no pulse. He gently lifted her off his leg and set her on the floor. Then he went to his wife and checked her pulse it was still too. He felt a rush of peace and satisfaction at what he did. He did the right thing he killed them! It was what he had longed for so long, wasn't it? A tiny, almost non-existent voice in the back of his mind was screaming in agony at the destruction of his family, but Rafael hardly noticed it. As far as he was concerned, he did a good thing. Tamiko and Manami Bashkir were dead. Then he remembered that he had another daughter... where was she? A quick glance at the window showed she had escaped, but he did not care. His daughters were not his primary targets anyway. It was mainly his wife. Then it occurred to him that if Svetlana had escaped, she might have alerted the police. _A pity,_ he though, _I would have loved to skin this traveler fellow. _As he rinsed off his hands and knife in the bathroom, he again caught glimps of the book "Running Rivers". On a whim, he picked it up and examined the author on the rear. _Eiri Yuki. Japan_. A deranged smirk twisted his lips. _I suppose I know where my next trip will be_. And that was the last time anyone saw Rafael Bashkir, until now.

**END EPISODE 11**

_(_In the next episode of "More Precious than Gold":_ THE FINALE!!!! YES - THE FINAL CHAPTER!!! Is Shuichi rescued on time? What about Yuki's writing career? Is K really of any help at all? You MUST stay tuned for the next episode if you want to find out!!!)_

**Author's Notes:**  
In my original version I did not have this chapter, but instead had 24 give a brief (but lame) explanation behind his madness. It wasn't done very well, and I did not like it. I guess an explanation this long wasn't exactly necessary, and you would probably rather find out what happens to Shu and Yuki instead of reading about 24's past, but all in good time :) My next chapter WILL be my last chapter because it finalizes the story. However, in my original version I wrote 2 bonus chapters that are kind of like an extension of the story (but not necessary to read), so if you're interested in that then you can stick around after the finale is posted. Again I apologize for the extreme amount of time in-between my updates, but I'm in college now and it's taking up most of my time :P I hope to revise and post the finale before the break ends though! As always, thank you for having interest in my story, and keep those reviews coming! I really do love reading what you have to say!!! Oh, and let me know if you think this chapter was even necessary... maybe I'll just summarize it instead of making it an entire chapter.

**More Author's Notes:  
**Just in case it wasn't clear, the setting for this story takes place in Russia (Rafael's home country). Also, "Svetlana" is a Russian name, and "Tamiko" is a Japanese name. Rafael and Manami agreed upon this since Manami herself is from Japan, and Rafael is from Russia. The names were meant to reflect upon their parents' home countries.


	12. More Precious Than Gold

******oO-----oOo-----Oo**

**Episode 12: More Precious than Gold**

Three tall camouflage-clad figures hovered over a small monitor that was set up next to an unadorned cinderblock wall. A recording of the press conference from earlier was playing on the screen, and it was almost finished. The tallest of the three - a blond foreigner with a bazooka strapped to his back - kept glancing down at the two-way radio clipped to his belt, as if waiting for a signal of some kind.

The other two, an American look-a-like who spoke flawless Japanese, and a raven-haired mirror-image of him, both stood on either side of bazooka-guy, patiently waiting for their orders.

"So explain to us again just how the hell you managed to track this dude down?" Tatsuha asked.

K adjusted some dials on the monitor. "I told you already. By using the most cutting edge tracing technology."

The younger Uesugi rolled his eyes, _That isn't very specific._ "And that tracing technology is...?" Tats gestured impatiently.

"Sorry, kid. But if I told you, then I'd have to eliminate you in the worst way."

"I could live with that." Eiri said.

Tatsuha sniffed indignantly.

Like K had "explained", he used very up-to-date (aka highly suspicious) methods of pinpointing 24's location. Although he wouldn't confirm it, everyone suspected K had found some sort of clue in 24's latest demands letter.

Right after orchestrating the "press conference", he swiftly edited the tape to suit his purpose. Once finished, they set up base in an area he claimed was a mere block from 24's hideout. However, he refused to say which building exactly Shuichi was being kept in so as to prevent Eiri from doing anything impulsive. There was no point in putting Shuichi in any unnecessary danger - or worse.

After waiting calmly for the evening news to appear, K pressed a series of buttons and switches on his equipment (which he refused to say where he acquired from) and switched 24's television signal with his own. On the screen, the three saw the video of the mock conference. K had edited it so smoothly, 24 would never be able to tell that he wasn't actually watching the real news. K even added some periodic static to the finished product to make it look more genuine. His entire plan was pure genius – even Tohma had to applaud its brilliance.

"Okay now - time for business. First off, it's likely 24 saw some static on his TV during the transition, but hopefully he won't notice. Second, I want to go over the reasons why I brought you two here with me. You see, if 24 goes back on his promise to release Shuichi after seeing the press conference, or if he suspects the conference is fake - which of course is impossible due to my breathtakingly genius skills - I will need some backup in order to storm the place."

Eiri crossed his fingers inside the pocket of his jeans, fervently hoping that everything would go according to plan, and the bastard release Shuichi unharmed. That way, there would be no need for further action, which could mean possible harm to the little singer.

Before setting up the screen, K had planted a powerful eavesdropping device right outside 24's hideout. He instructed Suguru to remain inside the getaway vehicle and use the receiver to listen in on the goings-on within the building. The vehical itself was parked two blocks away to avoid suspicion. If Shuichi was to be let go, than Suguru was to say "Clear" into his two-way radio. If not, than he was to say "Danger". Whichever word was spoken would determined the course of action K, Eiri, and Tatsuha ended up taking.

**o---~OoO~---o**

Suguru sat silently in the getaway car with Hiro behind the wheel. For the past hour, the keyboardist had been listening in on the device their manager had given him. From what he could hear, he knew 24 and Shuichi were watching the recorded press conference right now.

Hiro impatiently tapped his foot on the floor, all the while staring idly out the window. The sun strewn through, softly illuminating his handsome features. Suguru sneaked a glance at the guitarist, and hoped for Hiro's sake that Shuichi would indeed be rescued safely. Even though the younger teen wasn't particularly fond of the annoying and immature singer, he did respect his talent.

He slightly raised the volume on his receiver. He could hear some light talking every few moments - presumably from 24. Other than that, all was quiet.

Just then he heard the television being switched off, and suddenly his ears filled with the harsh sound of cruel laughter. He then heard 24 tell Shu to follow him. After a few moments, he heard 24 begin his explanation on how he started his crime spree. _So, the bastard really isn't going to let Shindou go. K-san was actually correct this time around. Better give the signal before it's too late..._

***o---~OoO~---o***

K's radio crackled to life, _"DANGER!"_

***o---~OoO~---o***

"Alright boys - it's showtime. Remember, we must be quick and accurate... otherwise Shuichi might be the one who pays the price. Suguru, call in reinforcements."

In the span of only 15 seconds, K handed Eiri the detonator and led Tatsuha towards 24's hideout. The pair positioned several explosives against the wall, then took cover.

On K's signal, Eiri pressed the detonator.

_**BOOM!!!**_ A HUGE explosion rocked the area - not that anyone had time to complain though...

***o---~OoO~---o***

Terror and panic gripped Shuichi in a choke hold as he felt the cold sharpness of the blade slowly cut into skin, and looked into the impossibly emotionless eyes of his soon-to-be murderer.

He cried out in pain, tears streaming down his face...... then felt a rocking explosion!

***o---~OoO~---o***

Even though Eiri hadn't seen exactly where K had taken Tatsuha, he let the sound of the explosion - and the resulting billows of smoke - guide him to where he needed to be.

Never in his life did he know he could run so fast...

Smoke, dust, and other pollutants heavily clouded the air, but Eiri didn't let that stop him. He continued to run almost blindly, nearly tripping several times over bits of randomly fallen debris.

***o---~OoO~---o***

Through the slowly dissipating smoke, Shuichi could see sunlight streaming through an enormous hole in the wall – the first time he had seen sunlight in days. He cold also make out three figures running closer.

The first to materialize was K.

Relief flooded through the vocalist; he was finally going to be rescued!

The second looked like Tatsuha.

And the third was... Shu squinted... Yuki???! Let's see.... well-toned body, a tad over 6 feet tall, flaxen hair, an acid expression on his face... yeah, it was definitely Yuki.

Eiri rushed to Shuichi to check if he was alright. A little blood from the cut on his neck was the only immediately obvious problem.

Meanwhile, K and Tatsuha went for 24 who seemed to have disappeared.

Even though his mission was to help capture 24, the novelist couldn't help but forget, and ended up giving his complete, undivided attention to his Shu. He quickly checked the singer for any more injuries, but saw none.

Shuichi, still coughing from the smoke, began crying as well - overwhelmed with happiness on seeing his Yuki again.

Since he couldn't find a key for the chains, Eiri hugged Shuichi right where he was. Pulling him so close, and almost crying with him.

"Oh my God, Shuichi – I can't tell you how glad I am you're safe!"

Shuichi continued to let loose his tears. He couldn't believe how laden with emotion Eiri's voice was. He held on tightly, never wanting to let go, knowing that Eiri would keep him safe from 24. He'd never let 24 hurt him again.

But before he could say anything in responds, K and Tatsuha came back into the room. By now most of the smoke had cleared, and Shuichi could see that they were each gripping an arm of a furious, heavily struggling 24.

Shu whimpered when he saw him. Almost in slow motion, Eiri turned around to see what he was looking at. What he saw was the face that had haunted his dreams for countless nights. The once faceless monster who first threatened him several months ago, then did the one thing that Eiri could never forgive – hurt the person he loved most. In just milliseconds, flashes of memory from the video, the countless hours of waiting in worry for news of his beloved, the blood on Shu's neck, all whizzed through his mind - and was enough to send Eiri's rage through the roof.

Payback time.

He jumped up, and rammed his fist so hard into 24's stomach, he flew right out of K and Tatsuha's grasp. Before either of them could stop him, Eiri was on top of him, pounding out his very existence. He slammed his fists into his stomach, chest, face, and just about anywhere else it would hurt.

Behind him, K grabbed a syringe he had prepared, and jammed it into Eiri's arm. The liquid in the needle calmed him down almost instantly, and he stopped his attack. K then slipped in behind 24 and cuffed him. Immediately, several officers swarmed in from outside and went to take 24 into custody, each thanking K for helping them catch him. While K continued to talk with the officers, Tatsuha led Eiri back to where Shuichi was still chained to the chair.

"What... the hell... was in that needle?" He gasped.

Tatsuha chuckled. "K-san figured you'd try and do something like attack the bastard, so he made one of those especially for you. But don't worry bro, it's harmless - at least, he _says_ its harmless. Anyway, all it's supposed to do is keep you calm for a few minutes then wear off, and you'll be back to your normal angry self again."

An officer who had searched 24's pockets tapped Eiri on the shoulder and handed him a key, which Eiri used to immediately free Shuichi from the metal links.

"B-but how?" Shuichi stammered, "You were just on TV a little while ago?!?!"

K smiled, "Oh that was only a recording. After I found out where you were being held, we scouted the place out, and then jammed your TV signal with ours so I could entertain you with my masterpiece. *Sigh* Oh 24, would it not have been so much easier for you if you had just let Shuichi go?"

"But how did you manage to pull that off?" Shuichi asked, still wide-eyed.

"Easy. Hired some wanna-be actors, borrowed camera equipment from real journalists who owed me favores... and so forth. Your precious Yuki not only gets to keep you, but he gets to keep his job as well."

Nearby, three officers were dragging 24 out with them. "YOU MEAN IT WAS ALL A TRICK?! A LIE?! YOU FUCKING SONOFA-"

"Stop." Eiri said, standing up and meeting 24's face eye to eye. "I have chosen. I have made my decision. All this time you've been asking me what my gold was, and I think you deserve to know."

The room fell silent as everyone's eyes went to Eiri.

"My gold..... is my career. I would never give that up - if I could avoid it."

Shuichi's face fell. _Of course it is. How could I have thought differently._

"But don't get the wrong idea," Eiri turned to Shuichi, "Because you, _you_, my darling Shuichi, are my _platinum_."

He gently kissed Shuichi on his lips before continuing, "I would never, **never**, give you up for _anything_. I would rather die than lose you. There isn't anything I own that is more valuable to me than you."

"Yuki," Shu said softly, "You were willing to go through all that... just for me?"

"Oh, you'd better believe it! That and more!" Tatsuha said cheerfully, "He was even willing to give up his nine-to-fiver _for real_ just to get you back. You can bet we all thought he was high or something when we first heard him say it, but I guess he was actually sober and clean at the time. At least, that's how he looked..." He smirked teasingly at his brother.

"...You would really throw away your career for me? For me?!"

"You baka," Eiri said, smiling tenderly. "I remember a time when I would have paid anything to get rid of you, but like a pair of good shoes, you just grew on me. I simply couldn't let you go anymore. I know I've been utterly cold to you these past several months, and even though I can never change what I did to you, I want you to know that I'm sorry. I'm sorry I took you for granted, thinking that you'd always be there no matter what, no matter how cruelly I treated you. I'm sorry for not appreciating what I had in front of me all this time. I'm sorry I hurt you so badly. Even my career, with everything that comes with it - wealth, fame, comfort - all that pales in comparison when it comes to you. Without you, I'm incomplete. And I'm also sorry that it took this whole disaster to make me realize that. You deserve so much better. I know that this may be too much to ask, possibly too late, and I don't really expect you to since I don't deserve it, but.... will you forgive me?"

He gently caressed Shu's cheek. "And I'm sorry I hit you. I'm so sorry."

Tears - genuine tears - glistened in Eiri's beautiful, golden eyes as he waited for the answer.

Shuichi looked at him, still trying to absorb all his lover had just told him. It was almost too much for him to take, and he felt on the brink of sensory overload.

"Wait, before you answer, there is something else I have to tell you. I know I don't deserve your love anymore; I have never been worthy of it. But, there is something that you _must_ know."

Eiri paused, feeling a lump rise in his throat, "I-"

The lump grew larger, causing his voice to crack with emotion, and his bottom lip to tremble. "I-"

"I LOVE YOU, SHUICHI!"

Eiri broke down, finally unable to control himself any longer. Somewhere off in the distance, he could vaguely feel the presence of people gathering...

Shuichi held a trembling, sobbing Eiri in his arms, and allowed him to cry on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms lovingly around the novelist, and gently kissed the top of his head. Tears ran down from his own face.

"Oh, Yuki! I don't care what happens to me - you are always gonna be the most important person in my life no matter what! You can always count on my love, through thick or thin, rain or shine, for better or for worse! I don't care what you do to me, as long as-"

He sniffed, wiping some tears off his face with his sleeve.

"As long as you love me, Yuki! I'll be with you until the end of time if you want me to. I'd go to the ends of the earth for you, I'd accomplish any feat for you, hell - I'd even slap my own grandma for you!"

Chuckles emerged from the distance. A _Lot_ of chuckles.

Puzzled, Shu and Eiri looked up, only to see 59 - count 'em - 59 various reporters (real reporters) representing practically every TV station, magazine, and radio station in all of Tokyo and each of Japan's major cities, all with running cameras, flashing bulbs, and pads and pens.

Shu's face turned red, and Eiri suddenly looked very annoyed. _When the fuck did all these people get here?_

Right at the front of the crowd, K and Tatsuha acting as their only source of crowd control, did their best to keep all the people at bay. Unfortunately, it wasn't going so well.

"Our barricade isn't gonna hold out much longer, soldier!" K said through clenched teeth. Some of the people were finding every weak point in their human blockade, and were about to break through.

"I think you're right, Major."

"Time to execute maneuver H."

"Couldn't you just shoot 'em all?"

"Can't."

"And why the hell not, mister king of hand-cannons?

"Promised Judy I wouldn't shoot anyone today."

"..."

"I said, 'execute maneuver H'!"

"Roger that."

K and Tatsuha suddenly abandoned their posts, running up to Eiri and Shu. K grabbed Eiri and dragged him out of the building, with Tatsuha following close behind carrying the small strawberry-haired vocalist. The four quickly ran through an alternate exit K had found, and were immediately met with a sleek black car.

A window rolled down. Hiro waved, and grinned when he saw Shuichi. "Maneuver H all ready to roll."

The four jumped in and sped away, leaving in their wake a cloud of dust and a crowd of disappointed journalists.

***o---~OoO~---o***

Once on the road, K immediately checked Shuichi for any possible medical problems. Other than some light bruising and some welts - apparently from the riding crop - and a slight cut on his neck, Shu was healthy and fine. K pulled out the first aid box and started to clean him up.

When he finished, K began to explain everything that had gone on since his disappearance. He spared no detail. He also spent extra time on all of his ingenious methods used to save him. Suguru rolled his eyes at K's exaggerations.

All the while, Eiri had both his arms wrapped protectively around Shuichi, not wanting to let him go. Not again. Shu held on tightly to Eiri's arm, not wanting to let go either.

When K finally finished his narrative, everyone sat in silence.

Finally, Shu asked, "Just out of curiosity, why did you choose Hiro to be the driver of the get away car?"

K shrugged. "It was the most logical choice for two reasons; first one, Eiri was in no condition to drive, and Hiro is a better driver than Tatsuha,"

Tatsuha stuck his tongue out at K and crossed his arms childishly.

"Second," he continued, "Having one person with me who was so closely attached to Shuichi was enough. If I had brought Hiro and left Tatsuha to manage the car, I'd be risking having him go straight to Shuichi with Eiri instead of helping me. I needed at least one guy to help me catch 24. Tatsuha was the man. Suguru wouldn't have been much help either, what with his small stature and all."

This time it was Suguru who got all indignant - except he didn't stick his tongue out. A bit too childish for him.

Shu nodded. It made perfect sense. Suddenly, it dawned on him,

"Yuki! What about your injuries, you know from when those guys attacked you???"

Eiri said nothing. His silence telling him that he still hadn't healed properly.

"Oh Yuki, first thing you need to do when we get home is rest. Otherwise you'll never get better - you don't want to be injured forever now do you?"

"No mother. I don't." Eiri smirked at Shu's sudden maternal attitude.

Everyone chuckled.

"Shuichi is right though," K said and Tatsuha nodded in agreement. "Unless you want to go right back to that hospital, you're gonna have to spend some time in your own bed, _resting_." His emphasis on the word clearly saying that he knew other things that he might try to do in bed.

"Yuki?" Shu asked,

"Yeah?"

"Did you really mean what you said back there, about me being your platinum and all?"

Eiri closed his eyes and gently kissed Shu's neck, "Shuichi," he said in between kisses, "Have I ever said anything to you that I didn't mean?"

"Well...there was this time when-"

(Cue music for "Amazed" - by Lonestar)

"I meant every single word I said to you back there." Eiri interrupted him, "Every single one. So you can rest assured that every word that came out of my mouth was the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."

*///_Every time our eyes meet, this feelin' inside me,_///*

"You know what?" Shu asked,

*///_Is almost more than I can take,_///*

"What?"

*///_Baby when you touch me,_///*

"I love you, Yuki!"

*///_I can feel how much you love me,_///*

"I love you too, Shuichi."

*///_And it just blows me away._///*

"Oh, and Yuki?"

*///_I've never been this close to anyone or anything,_///*

"Yeah?"

*///_I can hear your thoughts,_///*

"What's 'platinum'?"

*///_I can see your dreams._///*

*****End Last Episode*****

*///_I don't know how you do what you do,_///*

Ending Credits:

*///_I'm so in love with you,_///*

Story written by: Arekkusu

*///_It just keeps gettin' better._///*

Date I started draft: Late February, 2007

*///_I want to spend the rest of my life,_///*

Date I finished draft: May 3rd, 2007

*///_With you by my side,_///*

Ending Theme: "Amazed" by Lonestar

*///_Forever and ever._///*

Shuichi's lyrics: "Unrequited Love" by Arekkusu

*///_Every little thing that you do,_///*

##Snapshot: 24's face glowering from the covers of newspapers with the headlines: Crazy Killer Caught during Kidnapping Case.

*///_Baby I'm amazed by you._///*

##Snapshot: Tohma noticing the bullet hole in the floor of studio B7.

*///_The smell of your skin,_///*

##Snapshot: Shuichi gently stroking Eiri's head while he's sleeping on his keyboard.

*///_The taste of your kiss,_///*

##Snapshot: Police hauling a jewelry thief to the station.

*///_The way you whisper in the dark._///*

##Snapshot: Tohma surveying the damage done in Studio C caused by K's explosion.

*///_Your hair all around me,_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri curiously analyzing a tiny, almost invisible ball he found stuck on the top of his laptop...

*///_Baby you surround me,_///*

##Snapshot: A memory of Shuichi blink-Morse-coding to Hiro during history class.

*///_You touch every place in my heart._///*

##Snapshot: Tohma examining a bullet hole in the wall of the lounge.

*///_You know it feels like the first time, every time,_///*

##Snapshot: K overseeing the organization of the fake news crews and cameras. He's holding a couple of very big guns.

*///_I want to spend the whole night in your eyes._///*

##Snapshot: Victorious high school students giving the V sign to the cameras. Some are pouring through fashion magazines.

*///_I don't know how you do what you do,_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri glaring angrily when he sees that the little ball has a lens...

*///_I'm so in love with you,_///*

##Snapshot: Tohma reading a tabloid featuring the story of how 24 was caught, along with the heartfelt love message Eiri had given Shu. Two photos are on the cover of the tab: one of Eiri kissing Shuichi full in the mouth, the other of 24 glowering angrily at the cameras, and trying to give the finger through his cuffs.

*///_It just keeps gettin' better._///*

##Snapshot: Shuichi looking up 'platinum' on the internet.

*///_I want to spend the rest of my life,_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri crushing the little ball between his fingertips, and wondering just how the hell got attached to his computer.

*///_With you by my side, forever and ever,_///*

##Snapshot: An angry tourist stomping out of a courtyard, apparently losing his lawsuit. There is a sushi convention going on in the background.

*///_Every little thing that you do,_///*

##Snapshot: Shuichi pouring through a new cook book he bought. The recipes he's looking at look a bit complicated considering his cooking ability. He's got a determined look on his face.

*///_Baby I'm amazed by you._///*

##Snapshot: 6 K-clones inside studio B of N-G. Two clones over-seeing the duties of each band member – and each holding some pretty big guns. Shuichi looks as if he's about to cry, Hiro's glancing nervously at each clone at either side of him while trying to play his guitar, Suguru's simply trying to ignore the clones, Sakano has long since fainted, and K is sitting back in his chair, watching the scene with a goofy grin on his face – he's also holding a very big gun...

*///_Every little thing that you do,_///*

##Snapshot: Shuichi sweetly tucking an exhausted Eiri into bed after they got home from his rescue and 24's capture.

*///_I'm so in love with you,_///*

##Snapshot: Svetlana and Tamiko happily playing dolls together.

*///_It just keeps gettin' better!_///*

##Snapshot: Tatsuha standing in his living room, telling Ryuichi all about his awesome part in rescuing Shuichi from 24. Ryu is in his chibi form, gazing up at Tats with huge glassy eyes, shining with pure awe and admiration.

*///_I want to spend the rest of my life,_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri can't get out of bed (for the fourth day in a row), so Shuichi is bringing in breakfast on a tray (for the fourth day in a row). Eiri sees it, and a little thought-bubble above his head reads "I can't take much more of his cooking...please gods, heal me already! I'll do anything!!!"

*///_With you by my side, forever and ever,_///*

##Snapshot: Hiro strumming his guitar, idly daydreaming about K.

*///_Every little thing that you do, Oh!_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri in the process of cleaning up his house after the breakin, and noticing that even his condoms have been cut into pieces.

*///_Every little thing that you do,_///*

##Snapshot: Eiri sitting at his table (finally well enough to get up, but not much else), pretending to be enjoying something Shu cooked for him, but is actually trying not to gag.

*///_Baby I'm amazed by...you._///*

##Snapshot: K working out the location of 24's hideout. He's inside a room marked "Top Secret", and the screen of the computer he's working on shows maps and such from apparently hacked-into computers from places like the FBI, CIA, NSA, MI5, MI6...

**And to all the awesome people on this site who reviewed my story:**  
MidoriEyes, DarkMetalAngel of Destruction, 1n, Patpat, hpets, suvaki, hokage, ForeverFallen304, intelligent-one, Lunasariel, ^_^, pantherdemonXO8, lolopixie, Rizay, PaladinDragon, sayuri2023, Nikkapillar, coffee-house-girl, lelalemon, Eveliina92, eclecticwitch, dbskxsuju, Kuramas-aqua-queen, SweetDevilzEyez, a desperate fan, SadandLonelyOne, Lucky13roxas77, akaSky, chochowilliams, maria, Gothic Anime Lover, Klei, Artemis44, cain aidan, InfinityOnTheRun, AP, Soldieret of Love, Chibiwu, Chemical-euphoria (and if I've missed your name, please accept my deepest apologies). I can't thank you guys enough for your input, even if it was just a simple comment or a demand for an update - I love getting reviews and it really makes the writing process much more enjoyable! Thank you!!!! =^_^=

*** *** ***

**Platinum Facts:**

Platinum (Pt): a heavy grayish white metallic chemical element, which is 30 times rarer than gold. In fact, almost 160 tons of platinum are produced annually, compared to about 1500 tons of gold produced annually.

Currently, platinum is worth about $50 per gram.

Gold is currently worth about $35 per gram.

In summary: Platinum is more precious than gold.

*** *** ****

**Author's Notes:**  
I hope you enjoyed my story! Judging by the reviews I received, it appears the story was well liked! SQUEEE that makes me so HAPPY!!!!!!! :D Even though this marks the final chapter of the story itself, I plan to add a couple of "bonus" chapters. They don't really contribute to the story, so you don't have to read them. They're just some funny 1-shots I thought I'd write that are kinda related to the story (but again, not necessary to read) lol.

Also, before I forget, in my original draft I had come up with a really lame explanation as to why 24 was after Yuki. My goal was to seriously rewrite that part (which became chapter 11), but I ended up getting so into the reason behind his illness, that I forgot to tie in that chapter with the rest of the story "-_- So I went back to chapter 11 and added a few lines throughout the chapter to help tie it in a little better... I'm not sure I did a very good job, but hopefully it will work out!

Okay, so I'd like to end by thanking all the super awesome people who took the time out of their busy schedules to read and review - or just read - my story *mega glomps!*, I'd also like to thank my favorite fanfic authors for inspiring me to write one myself, and some thanks is also due to my Four Best Friends: Mr. Thesaurus, Mr. Microsoft Word, Mrs. Laptop, and Ms. Pillow. And of course, my greatest and most respectful thanks goes to Maki Murakami-sama for creating such awesome characters and an equally awesome manga series. Her art is some of the best I've seen, and her stories go much deeper then most others I've read. All hail Maki Murakami!!! Thank you so much for giving the manga-loving world "Gravitation".


	13. Bonus Chapter 1

**oO--_---oOo---_--Oo**

**Bonus #1: The Interview**

A/n: Okay, let's get one thing straight: most of you think this story is merely a work of fan fiction, but I must admit that it isn't. In reality, I'm a celebrity investigative reporter for a magazine that shall remain anonymous. My original assignment was to investigate the obviously waning relationship between Eiri Yuki and Shuichi Shindou, but ended up getting the story of a century! By talking with the characters and various other witnesses, I was able to piece together what really happened, and ended up creating a dramatized documentary of sorts. Unfortunately, due to threats of lawsuits from a certain powerful person at N-G, I was unable to publish the story in my magazine, and ended up having to settle with marking it as celebrity fan fiction. Even still, everyone involved will recognize my work as being real, but there's nothin they can do about it *evil laugh*! Anyway, I figured that no major story is complete without interviews from the persons involved, so here they are. Three exclusive interviews purely for your enjoyment! So, enjoy! (The interviews took place over a period of 5 week btw)

A/n 2: If I were asked which interview was the most difficult to obtain, it would be this first one. The reason? I wanted to interview Eiri and Shuichi together, but that was a problem because Eiri was on a tight deadline and _adamantedly_ refused to leave his computer for more than 5 minutes. And if _that_ weren't enough, poor Shuichi was under some serious K influence to get the songs finished for his new album. During that time I was forbidden to see Shu, so therefore I did not even go near him - and who can blame me? Magnum .44's may not be very large, but they pack a HUGE punch! *shudder* (don't ask). Well anyway, in the end I had to wait until both their deadlines were over to spend any practical amount of time with them. But who am I to complain? It's not like this interview is costing me anything...

**INTERVIEW #1**: Eiri Yuki and Shuichi Shindou

**Arekkusu:** Whew! I thought We'd never get this interview. Well, now that we're all settled here, let's begin. Jumping right into it, what are your thoughts or comments about the whole ordeal you went through?

**Eiri:** ...you really want me to answer that?

**Shuichi:** I didn't like it at all! First Yuki's all mean to me, then K just about kills me two frickin times, and then I get kidnapped and nearly carved to death by that damned psycho!

**Eiri:** Kusou gaki, always thinking about NO ONE but yourself. What about when I was nearly beaten to death? Or the fact that I had to spend TWO FUCKING WEEKS in the hospital, and nearly got killed _again_ in my attempts to get your little ass back home safe? *fuming*

**Shuichi:** Oh, I'm sorry! Of course I thought all those things were terrible...but you're okay now aren't you? ^^

**Yuki:** ...

**Shuichi:** And two weeks isn't really all that long...

**Eiri:** Oh? Would you like to try it sometime?

**Arekkusu:** Um, okay now, *sweatdrop* I see there were a lot of parts you didn't like. Why not tell me about the parts you _did_ like.

**Shuichi:** That's easy! I liked the ending where Yuki tells me I'm even more precious than gold! *sigh* I can't even articulate just how _happy_ that made me! By the way, what *is* platinum?

**Arekkusu:** ...

**Eiri:** What a baka.

**Shuichi:** But I'm serious! What _is_ it? A type of computers maybe?

**Arekkusu:** Actually Yuki-san, you'd be surprised how few people have heard of platinum.

**Shuichi:** Is it a foreign chocolate?

**Eiri:** You idiot! Since when do I value chocolate over gold? Tsk, I probably should've just told him that he was my favorite fuck toy. Language like _that_ is probably the only thing simple enough for him to understand.

**Arekkusu:** lol

**Shuichi:** ...heeeeey!

**Arekkusu:** Ahem, going back on subject. What would you have done to make the story better?

**Shuichi:** I woulda added more lemons.

**Eiri:** That's all? God, Shuichi you're hopeless.........more lemons doesn't sound too bad actually...

**Arekkusu:** Believe me, I tried to fit in as many lemons as possible (who cares if some of them never even happened? I know the readers won't care). In fact, after I finished the story, I went back and tried to find a place - any place - to squeeze in another one, but I failed. Don't worry; the next story I write - which will be a fictitious sequel to this one - won't be of such a serious nature, so I can easily fit in more lemons....maybe I'll even consider a Hiro x K pairing?

**Shuichi:** Oooh that would be cool! Hiro's been so lonely lately. I keep telling him to get a girlfriend or a boyfriend, but he just keeps telling me he's not interested. Maybe it'll even soften K up a bit so he won't be so trigger happy all the time.

**Arekkusu:** Still sore over the scare he gave you huh?

**Shuichi:** What do _you_ think?

**Eiri:** Maybe _I_ should invest in a couple of guns to keep Shuichi in line. That should guarantee some quiet while I'm writing.

**Shuichi:** Wh-What? Noooooo! My precious Yuki is turning into a K!

**Eiri:** I'm just kidding, but keep up that behavior and I might actually get one. Or three.

**Arekkusu:** lol, you two are hilarious! Geez, you guys are so good for each other, have you considered getting married?

**Shuichi:** No... but now that I think of it...

**Eiri:** Give my baka one more smart aleck idea like that and I'll put _you_ in a hospital for two weeks.

**Arekkusu:** Do that and I'll write an ENTIRE fic without a single lemon.

**Shuichi:** (whispering) psst, Yuki, let's stay on her good side.

**Eiri:** Whatever. Change the subject already.

**Arekkusu:** Okay, sorry 'bout that! ^^" Anyway, if I'm to consider a Hiro and K lemon, I'll also need to figure out what I'm gonna do about Suguru. I'd really hate to leave him without anyone to love...

**Shuichi:** ...maybe you could consider a love triangle with Hiro and K?

**Eiri:** *sighs in frustration and puts his head in his hand*

**Arekkusu:** Actually - no. I suppose I could give it a thought though. Anyway sorry, but it's time to let Eiri answer my question about what could have made it better.

**Eiri:** Listen miss, I'm a professional writer, and I happen to feel merciful enough right now to warn you: when it comes to critiqueing another's work, I spare no details...or feelings for that matter.

**Shuichi:** Don't I know it...

**Arekkusu:** One, I'm not a pro like you Yuki-san, so I expect some outright harsh critisism. Two, I'm no crybaby, so feel free to tell it like it is...not that you wouldn't do so anyway.

**Shuichi:** Are you implying that _I'm_ a _crybaby_?

**Arekkusu:** (shocked) I said no such thing!

**Eiri:** That's reporter talk for "Of course that's what I meant you idiot!"

**Arekkusu:** ... *sweatdrop*

**Shuichi:** I knew it!

**Eiri:** Shut up now brat. Okay Arekkusu-san, you wanted my opintion and now you're gonna get it. *clears throat* Let's start with a question: did you take English in high school?

**Arekkusu:** Well, I'm still _in_ high school, but I'm currently working through 12th grade English.

**Eiri:** I see. It completely shows. Although you had very few spelling errors - which are probably only due to your word-processor's spell-check feature, and not your own intelligence, which is probably very small - your sentence structure sucks - among other things. I'd go into all the nitty-gritty details, but you probably wouldn't even know what I'm talking about, so I won't bother. I will say that you've got no more talent than the baka here, and I don't recommend chasing writing as a career - unless you don't mind ending up homeless and ridiculed, but not before driving millions of innocent people insane due to crappy excuses for stories. You should really consider taking this English course of yours seriously, then maybe, one day - possibly when it snows in summer - you could write a decent paper. Until then, give your poor readers a break. I feel sorry for them, and hope that they walked away from your fanfic with _some_ sanity left in them. Also--

**Shuichi:** YUKI! Oh come on, what the hell is _wrong_ with you? You _know_ her story wasn't _that_ bad! I liked it, Hiro and Suguru liked it, K liked it, and so did all those other people who read it!

**Eiri:** (pissed at being interrupted) That's because you're all morons.

**Shuichi:** Not only that, but remember those song lyrics you critiqued when we first met? They were definitely worse than this story, yet you didn't tell _me_ off so harshly.

**Eiri:** (smirking) It wouldn't have been necessary. All I said was that your lyrics suck, and you still practically broke down. To say any more would probably have left you unable to function for the next year.

**Shuichi:** ...

**Arekkusu:** No, no, it's okay. Really. I asked for the critique, and I got it. I'll follow your advice though, but I don't think I'll ever be as good as you. At least, not for a good long while.

**Eiri:** You mean "not in this life time". Oh, and speaking of song lyrics...I must say that while "Unrequited Love" was much more pleasant on the ears than anything Shuichi has ever written, it still sucks.

**Arekkusu:** ...but not as much?

**Eiri:** You got it. Everything he writes sucks

**Shuichi:** That's not true! Everything I write does _not_ suck! The rage beat lyrics didn't suck, and neither did spicy marmalade! Tell him, Arekkusu! Tell him that my lyrics don't suck!

**Arekkusu:** Don't put me in that position!...I'm only a mere mortal who has no place in critiquing the works of a singing deity such as yourself.

**Eiri:** Again, that's reporter talk for "yeah it sucks, but they'll dock my pay if I say so."

**Arekkusu:** I said don't put me in that position.

**Shuichi:** *waaaaahhhhh!* You're mean! Both of you!

**Arekkusu:** Hey now, will it make you feel better if I give you an exclusive advance preview of my next bonus chapter?

**Shuichi:** *sniff* Depends. What's it about?

**Arekkusu:** One word: smut.

**Shuichi:** Oh, _that_ one. Nope - I've already read it.

**Arekkusu:** (flabbergasted) Wh-what? But...how...? I had the only copy saved on my computer under a 36-character password!

**Shuichi:** Ask K.

**Arekkusu:** ...

**Eiri:** (impatient) This interview has been getting _way_ off track. Are there any more questions? 'Cause I'd like to wrap this up soon.

**Shuichi:** Come on Yuki, this is fun! Tell you what, keep up the good attitude and don't give Arekkusu-chan any more trouble, and I'll _reward_ you later tonight! *heart*

**Eiri:** Why you little...

**Arekkusu:** Ooh, what romantic implications! Say...Shuichi-kun, would you like to explain exactly what you meant by "reward"? I think my readers will find your answer very intriguing!

**Eiri:** Shut up bitch! You and your mentally-challenged readers know _exactly_ what he's talking about. And as for you brat, you'd do well to close that trap of yours every now and again. I'm done with this stupid "interview", so tell your _readers_ I said "fuck you".

_--With that, Eiri stalks out of the room and into his office, closing the door with a bang.--_

**Shuichi:** I-I'm sorry! I know Yuki's been kinda moody lately, but I didn't think it was this bad. Tell all the readers that he didn't really mean it - he just says stuff like that when he's angry. *sniff*

**Arekkusu:** Will do. But he's right, we're totally going off track here. So...any afterthoughts before I conclude this interview?

**Shuichi:** Yeah - keep writing. I know Yuki said he thought it was awful, but I really liked it, and I know other people did too. Oh, and one more thing.

**Arekkusu:** Hm?

**Shuichi:** Is "Arekkusu" your real name?

**Arekkusu:** No. It's nothing more than the rough Japanese translation of my first name.

**Shuichi:** ...which is?

**Arekkusu:** Not telling! ^^ Okay, I guess that about wraps it up for now. Until next time, this has been Arekkusu interviewing Shuichi Shindou and Eiri Yuki. Bye!

**Shuichi:** Ja ne!

***o---~OoO~---o***

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***o---~OoO~---o***

**INTERVIEW #2**: Claude K Winchester, Hiroshi Nakano, and Tatsuha Uesugi

**Arekkusu:** Okay, even though you three didn't have staring roles, you were still very important nonetheless. So, if there was something you could change about the story, or maybe add or take away, what would it be and why?

**Tatsuha:** I woulda added a lemon staring me and my babycakes, Ryu. I shouldn't need to explain _why_.

**Hiro:** I liked it just fine. Although I would have liked to be just a little more involved...

**K:** What do you mean "didn't have staring roles"? I played such a huge part in that damn fiasco, and yet I'm still not one of the stars? Hmph. If it wasn't for me, Shuichi would never have been found.

**Tatsuha:** Oh shut up. You only found his location because of the undying assistance you had from your secret admirer.

**Hiro:** You're the one who should shut up Tatsuha.

**K:** ...ah yes, about that whole "secret admirer" thing. I was going over the story before we went on air, and I noticed the comments you had about me...are they true?

**Hiro:** ...

**Tatsuha:** Of course they're true! Can't you feel his burning desire whenever he looks at you? lol, he probably even jerks off to mental images of you, or better yet, ACTUAL PHOTOGRAPHS! rofl

**Hiro:** Damn you, I'm serious. If you don't shut up...

**Tatsuha:** Oooh I'm shakin' in my boots! Bring it on, guitar man!

**K:** You never did answer the question, Hiroshi.

**Arekkusu:** Oh, come on now, you're backing him into a corner. If you want Hiroshi-san to confess his feeling towards you, you're just gonna have to wait till my next fic.

**Hiro:** Do that and you'll end up in the hospital.

**Arekkusu:** ...what's with you guys and wanting to put me in the hospital? *sweatdrop*

**Tatsuha:** Ah, Hiro simply _reeks_ of denial. But seriously now, I think K and Hiro would make a GREAT pair! Oh, and if you put lots of lemons of me and Ryu in your next fic, I'll grant you protection from Hiro and that other guy who desires to see you in the hospital.

**Arekkusu:** ^^" You really think you could protect me from your big bro?

**Tatsuha:** ...Oh. You were talking about _him_. I take back everything I said. I'd rather not get involved in his personal life! He's too scary when he's mad.

**Hiro:** Coward. Ryuichi-kun must be proud.

**K:** *chuckle* That's okay. If you pair me up with Hiro, _I'll_ protect you from Eiri.

**Arekkusu:** Sounds great! I've always wanted a ticking bomb to guard me!

**Tatsuha:** Well said! You writers really _do_ have a sense of humor! Well, excluding my aniki of course.

**K:** I think Arekkusu has just earned another assassin out for her head.

**Arekkusu:** *sweatdrop* So anyway...

_--K then grabs notes from my hand and rips them up--_

**K:** This interview is now over.

_--25 minutes and 7 bullets later--_

**Arekkusu:** Okay, now that Mister K is gone, do you wanna continue?

**Tatsuha:** I guess. It's not like I've got anything better to do, what with Ryuichi being gone in America for two months.

**Hiro:** Why didn't you just go with him?

**Tatsuha:** I couldn't. Last thing I need is my dad getting all suspicious about my private life - and running off to America with another guy is just as bad as wearing a big red sign over my head that reads: "I'm bi, and I shag Ryuichi Sakuma". See what I mean?

**Hiro:** Yeah. Sorta.

**Arekkusu:** I understand, but couldn't you just make up some kind of cover story to explain your, um, _vacation_ to the states?

**Tatsuha:** Yeah right. My dad may look stupid, but unfortunately he isn't. He knows I've been into Nittle Grasper since, like, forever, and couple that with the fact that he already suspects my sexual orientation, and no explanation in hell could convince my dad of any innocent reason why I would run off with Ryu.

**Arekkusu:** I see. So you're stuck here until his return?

**Tatsuha:** *sigh* Yeah.

**Hiro:** Hey, Are-san, I have a question regarding your investigative methods.

**Arekkusu:** Fire away. I don't have my notes anymore, courtesy of K-san, so we can talk about whatever now.

**Hiro:** I noticed that you wrote a lot about stuff that we were thinking, stuff that I doubt we had told you...so why not explain how you did that?

**Tatsuha:** Hey, good question! I'd like to know too...

**Arekkusu:** *gulp* H-how do you know I didn't just make the thoughts up?

**Hiro:** Because I talked to some other people, and they said that even though what you had written was exactly what  
they were thinking at the time, they hadn't told you anything about them. So how did you know?

**Arekkusu:** (extremely uneasy) Perhaps we should follow K-san's lead and end the interview now! ^^"

**Tatsuha:** Hey hey hey! Not till you've answered the question!

**Arekkusu:** ...okay...but this is for your ears only..........(whispers)

**Hiro:** Oh. My. Effing. God.

**Tatsuha:** Who knew that was even possible? I'm ready to go home now so I can cleanse my mind of her evil influence.

**Arekkusu:** Great! 'Cause I made that up lol!

**Hiro & Tatsuha:** ...

***o---~OoO~---o***

**COMMERCIAL BREAK:**  
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***o---~OoO~---o***

**INTERVIEW #3**: Suguru Fujisaki, and Mika Seguchi

**Mika:** Before we begin, I must first say that there are certain questions I may not be able to answer due to the agreement I have with Tohma.

**Arekkusu:** Which is?

**Mika:** I am not to - and I quote - "give that damn American any more fodder for her fucking story". He's actually pretty angry with you for writing about Eiri's personal life.

**Arekkusu:** I'm not surprised. A few days ago I had called asking for an interview, and he hung up as soon as I said my name. Not only that, but every time I tried to call back, I keep getting a message saying that the number has been disconnected. He probably put me on his "forbidden" phone list.

**Suguru:** Don't mind him. He's always cross, even though he hides it behind that facade of his.

**Mika:** Don't tell him I said this, but I agree with Suguru-kun. By the way, I think you did a good job of sticking with the story, and not adding too many unnecessary things in attempts to make it more interesting.

**Arekkusu:** That wouldn't have been necessary anyway. That whole disaster with 24 was extremely interesting in itself.

**Mika:** By the way, I already read the interview you had with Shuichi-kun and Eiri, and I agree that they should get married. ^^ But don't tell Eiri I said that of course! He's got enough on his plate right now without my meddling in his personal life.

**Arekkusu:** I wouldn't call it meddling, Mika-san. You're his older sister, and you truly care about him. Even though he treats you quite mean sometimes, I think that inside his heart, he appreciates your concern for him. You and Tohma-san...although I think he over does it a little.

**Suguru:** If I were you, I'd be careful with what I say about N-G's head honcho. I've heard more than one account of his making people who anger him "disappear".

**Arekkusu:** I can only imagine.

**Suguru:** Well, switching to the subject about your story, I think you did a good job writing it - especially if you consider the fact that it's your first one. I agree with Yuki-san that you could have done better, but improvement will come with time. I didn't learn how to play the keyboard over night by the way!

**Mika:** Yes, true. I also compliment your choice of an end song for the closing chapter. I had never even heard of the band before then, and although I'm not particularly fond of the country genre, I enjoyed the song and thought it fit the ending perfectly. One thing I didn't like about the story though, was how much detail you put into Eiri's attack. It was so violent! I couldn't make myself read it, and skipped the entire segment. But, I suppose you did that in order to keep everything "interesting" - am I right?

**Arekkusu:** Well, in a way, yes. I didn't mean to offend you, and I totally understand your not being able to read it, but I guess it's different when you aren't actually related to the person.

_--Mika's cel phone rings--_

**Mika:** Suguru, it's your parents. They wanted to know if you were going to be home in time for dinner, otherwise they were planning on eating out.

**Suguru:** Oh, um, tell them I'll be there. I didn't know they were expecting me.

**Arekkusu:** Well, in that case I suppose I should wrap this up now. Thank you both for taking out the time to talk with me, I greatly appreciate it!

**Mika:** No problem! Actually, though Tohma would disagree with me, I think your stories are a great way for me to know what's going on in my brother's life without ever having to bother him lol. Keep it up, Arekkusu-san.

***o---~OoO~---o***

**Notes to my Reviewers:**  
OMG, thanks SOOOOO much for all the reviews! I can't describe just how happy they make me! Really, I read EVERY SINGLE ONE, and I take them very seriously. After all, they're my only means of knowing whether or not my writing is liked or not.

Btw, there's one more bonus chapter after this one!


	14. Bonus Chapter 2

**oO--_---oOo---_--Oo**

**Bonus #2: The Results of Depravity**

*This takes place about 8 weeks after Episode 12*

Eiri Yuki lay awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling. The clock on his nightstand read 3:30am. Shuichi slept soundly, buried deep in the covers right next to him.

Eleven hours ago, Eiri had returned home from his bi-weekly appointment with his doctor, who would check up on his healing process and make sure he wasn't re-injuring himself. All during that time Eiri wasn't allowed _any_ physical exertion beyond walking and typing - and even then his doctor recommended he do as little of the two as possible. It really pissed the author off to be confined to his bed for the greater part of nearly every day, and Shuichi made sure (much to Eiri's annoyance) that all walking-related chores around the house were taken care of so he wouldn't have very many excuses to get out of bed.

One thing Eiri insisted on doing himself though, was cooking. Two weeks of Shu-cuisine was more than enough to last a few lifetimes for the novelist. The singer would still "surprise" him with breakfast on the few - and fast diminishing - times Eiri would awaken late though.

Strangely enough, he couldn't find it in him to tell his lover just how bad his cooking sucked (maybe because he didn't want to spend the next week trying to cheer up the overly-emotional singer). This really surprised him, because he couldn't remember a time when he would withhold criticism - especially when the situation demanded it. This began to bother him a bit, at least until he credited it to his current physical state, and not that he was growing soft. Still, all he did was simply tell the teen that he preferred to do the cooking himself as a "thanks" to Shuichi for doing the house chores - which was partially true anyway. Of course Shu was delighted at the prospect of eating his Yuki's fine cooking every day, so he never complained.

Anyway, this last visit to the hospital was the one Eiri had waited eight long weeks for.

After a brief check-up, the doctor took a couple of x-rays and left the room for a few minutes to analyze them. When he returned, he told the very impatient writer that he had healed completely! Eiri heaved a sigh of relief - _finally_, he thought.

"Even though you're all healed up, I still wouldn't recommend anything like skydiving or mountain-climbing for at least another week. Also, as long as you don't do any more reenactments of Streetfighter 3, I shouldn't be seeing you again, Mr. Uesugi!"

A vein pulsed on Eiri's forehead, "If I wasn't in such a good mood from the news, I'd have socked your pathetic sense of humor right out that sterilized window."

The doctor merely shrugged as if Eiri had said nothing more than a comment on the weather. All that did was make Eiri angrier. "Oh, go ahead. Keep up your jokes. I swear, one day you may just end up having to see one of your own."

The good-natured doctor just smiled and shooed the writer out of his office so he could see his next patient.

Eiri couldn't wait to tell Shuichi the news. You see, all throughout those eight weeks, he was absolutely forbidden by his doctor from taking part in any strenuous activity - which unfortunately included having sex. Also unfortunate, was the fact that Shuichi was there to hear the doctor explain all the things Eiri wasn't allowed to do, and Shuichi - being the good wife he was - made damn sure that he didn't do them. That was actually the last time he allowed his lover to tag along with him on his appointments.

Plus, due to Shu's unpredictable schedule, and the fact that nearly everyone who knew them entered and left the apartment like they owned the place, Eiri decided not to risk even jerking off for fear of being caught. Just the knowledge of being walked in on at any possible moment made him quite irritated.

In short, Eiri was exceedingly H-O-R-N-Y, and had been getting more so during past eight weeks. He wanted it _now_, and broke several anonymous world-records in driving home that afternoon.

Much to the author's immense disappointment though, he found his strawberry-haired lover _asleep_ on the couch.

_Damn, I knew I should've called him _before_ he felt like getting all sleepy_.

He knelt down to shake him awake, but stopped. For the first time since he could remember, he studied Shuichi's sleeping face. At first glance his looked just like any other sleeping face - free of any expression whatsoever - but on closer inspection, Eiri saw traces of fatigue and exhaustion buried in his features.

_He probably had a rough day at the studio. Not surprising actually, considering the fact they are working overtime to get their stupid album out before the deadline. Hmph - that's why you should never procrastinate._ He chuckled at his own thought, like _he himself_ had never done the very same thing. Speaking of procrastination by the way, he made a mental note to himself to finish up the fourth chapter to his new novel before _his_ deadline reared its ugly head.

Eiri stood up and decided to go do that very thing. He figured it would just be best just to let the singer sleep. Besides, how good will he be in bed if he's exhausted? That was Eiri's reasoning anyway. Lastly (but certainly not least), K had been over a few weeks ago, and hinted that something bad would be in store for him if he was _ever_ the reason Shuichi was late or did poorly at work.

Oh well. There's always tomorrow.

On an impulse, Eiri turned back around and gently lifted Shuichi up in his arms. The poor boy was so tired, he didn't even stir - not even when the novelist changed his sweaty clothes and tucked him affectionately into bed.

He left to work on his novel for a while, had some leftovers for dinner, and took a brief shower before deciding to call it a night.

**o---OoO---o**

It was now 3:45 in the morning, and Eiri still couldn't fall sleep. Apparently the sleep-fairies were avoiding him for some reason.

He rolled onto his side so he could face his still sleeping lover. How much had the baka slept already? Ten, eleven hours? Isn't that _way_ more than what is recommended for the average 19-year-old person? He decided it was.

Gently he poked Shuichi's arm until the boy's eyes fluttered open.

"hmmf? Wuzit?" Shu looked around, apparently confused as to where he was.

"Did you sleep well?"

Shuichi rose to full awareness in less than a second. "Oh, Yuki! Yeah I slept great! I feel totally refreshed and ready for anything!...by the way, it's still dark out - what time is it anyway?" He sat up to glance over Eiri's body at the clock.

Quickly, Eiri slapped the digital clock onto the carpeted floor before the boy could see it. "It's morning."

"But it's still dar-"

Eiri cut him off with a deep and sudden kiss. Shuichi - also seriously deprived of any romantic activities - took it hungrily, completely forgetting everything else - for the moment anyway. Mmm, when was the last time he'd felt like this? He couldn't remember. All he could understand right now was how good Eiri's mouth tasted, how warm it felt, how long he had waited for this to happen again...

Suddenly he pushed Eiri away, breaking the kiss, and said, "Yuki! What about your-"

Eiri sat up stiffly and crossed his arms. "I was at the hospital today, and they said I'm fine now. Completely healed. Ready to go skydiving, or mountain-climbing, or whatever it was he said."

Shuichi narrowed his eyes and gazed at him skeptically. "Listen, Yuki. I know you want this just as much as I do - if not more. But I will not stand for it if you re-injure yourself-"

"What, you think I'm LYING?"

Shu was taken aback. Did he really think he was lying? ...No, of course not. When had Yuki ever lied to him? Never. Eiri always told him the truth - even when it hurt. He never fabricated the truth either. If something was blue, it was blue. Not teal, not sapphire, not cerulean, not even sky-blue, no - just blue. Shuichi knew better than anyone else just how honest Eiri could be sometimes. Tears flooded his eyes as he thought about what he'd said. After all the time they'd been together, all the things they'd gone through together, didn't the novelist deserve more trust than that? Sobs now filled his throat as he considered how to apologize.

Eiri gently touched Shu's chin, already a pretty good idea about what the thoughts going through his head were. "Shuichi, it's okay. I know you're just worried about me, and...I appreciate it. Really, I do." He draped his arms around him, and pulled him closer into a hug. "I _am_ telling the truth by the way, and if you don't believe me you can call the doctor later in the morning and ask him yourself." Eiri smirked, "And if it turns out I _was_ lying, than I'll do whatever you want to do all of next week. Is that reassuring enough for you?" The figure in his arms began to tremble.

"I-I'm so sorry! Yuki..." *sob* *sob*, "I shouldn't have doubted you, but I-I-"

"Shhh." Eiri whispered softly while gently rocking Shuichi back and forth in an effor to sooth him. It was working. "You don't have to explain anything. I understand.

Just then a thought popped into the novelist's mind, and it made him chuckle silently to himself. "There _is_ something you should know though." Eiri held him tighter, "While I _am_ thoroughly healed, the doctor prescribed some medicine to me that I'll be needing to take at least three times a day for the next 2 weeks, and I'll be needing your help in administering it."

He could practically see Shu's head tilt with confusion. This brought a smirk to his face.

"Hm? I'll be glad to help! But what kind of medicine is it? And what do I need to do?"

"Ooh, it's very effective medicine...but unfortunately your job is a bit strenuous." Eiri forced himself to keep from laughing - which would totally give it away - and was glad the darkness of the room kept Shuichi from seeing the grin on his face.

"...Um, I'm still confused."

"What I need you to do-" He leaned down to plant little kisses all over Shu's shoulders and neck, "is give me lots," He turned Shu around 90 degrees so he could reach his mouth, "and lots," Shuichi wrapped his arms around his lover to pull them even closer, "of relentless sexual satisfaction."

Understanding and realization filled Shuichi's mauve eyes. "Yuki, you impatient little...!" He laughed, and leaned his head back to give Eiri more access to his neck, "The doctor did _not_ say that!"

"How would you know? You weren't there."

"Because," Shu giggled when Eiri tickled him lightly, "doctors don't prescribe sex to patients!"

"That's really too bad," Eiri's voice got husky, arousal filling him, "'cause sex is the best medicine."

"Yuki, you're talking about laughter."

"Hey, if you don't want too..."

"No! I do! I do want too! I-"

"Good. Then you'll have no objections in getting started now. By the way Shuichi, you look a little pale..."

"I do? ...Hey, how can you tell? I can't even see my own hand in front of my face!"

Eiri ignored him, and firmly laid the giggling singer down. "Perhaps you should get a check-up...and I know a _great_ doctor." He chuckled.

Eiri put his leg over Shu, straddling him, and sat up on his knees, using his hands to hold Shu's wrists down. Shuichi's breathing increased along with his heart rate. He was growing impatient - the result of being denied a vital sexual function for way too long.

Suddenly a dim light flashed on, but because his eyes hadn't yet adjusted, it seemed much brighter than it really was. Eiri hand returned to Shu's wrist after he turned the bedside lamp on. Shuichi stared deep into the golden eyes that shown down from above him. The novelist looked ravenous - almost predatorial - like a starving wolf gloating over his catch just milliseconds before scarfing it down.

"Allow me to introduce myself," The writer began, "My name is Doctor Eiri Yuki, and I'll be your physician for today. You'll be needing a full body check-up - among other things - but first," He tugged at his shirt, "Let's get you out of those clothes."

Shuichi smirked seductively and wriggled around a bit under Eiri's firm grasp. "And if I don't want to?"

"Oh, believe me you will - otherwise I'll be forced to give you a shot."

Shuichi blinked once, mental images of what his Yuki was implying swimming through his head, and then burst out laughing!

"Oh, yes doctor! Yes! Gimme gimme gimme! I am _sooo_ through with waiting!"

"Such a naughty boy."

"Mmhmm, yes. So what are you gonna do about it?"

Eiri pretended to think for a moment. "I suppose the most logical thing to do would be to punish you."

He felt the singer grow hard under him at that comment, so he decided to continue. "But until I can think of an appropriate punishment for you, let's get that check-up over with. Now, stay still until I tell you otherwise."

Eiri moved down to Shu's legs and gently tugged his pants down. Shuichi tried to assist by wriggling out, but a swift smack to his thigh stopped him short. "When did I give you permission to move? Really Shuichi, you have the memory-span of a _goldfish_."

The singers face turned red as he realized he had forgotten such a simple command so easily. But it was hard not to be distracted, what with how long it had been since their last round, and add that to how delicious Yuki looked right now. His white shirt was partially open, revealing his lean, toned chest. And his blond hair hanging slightly over his left eye. Despite all that, he had to ask. "Um, what _is_ a goldfishes memory-span?"

"Approximately 5 seconds."

Shuichi's face deepened a shade.

Eiri smirked and finished his task. Now Shuichi's long, slender legs were spread out before him, and he couldn't help but admire how beautiful, and how utterly edible they looked. He all but licked his lips at the sight. Eiri forced himself to keep control of his impulses. His natural inclination after being depraved for so long would be to jump his boy and fuck the living daylights out of him, but he realized that he wanted this to last. He wanted this to be _good_. Again, another surprise he discovered within himself. His life with Shuichi really _was_ beginning to change him - for the better.

He began his work at the very tips of Shu's toes. His eyes taking in the perfectly pedicured nails, and then wandering slowly up his legs until he reached his crotch, who's arousal was more than obvious.

He put his hands on Shu's legs, and gently squeezed and rubbed them, starting from his ankles and working his way up. Shuichi moaned and whimpered his impatience. Eiri _loved_ those sounds. "A good pair of legs you have, boy." He said when he finished.

"That feels good, thank you _doctor_." Shuichi said grinning.

"Now let's move on."

Shu had assumed that had meant that they were finally gonna get started on the good part, and was once again disappointed when Eiri turned his attention towards Shu's torso and told him sit up so he could remove his shirt. Shuichi tried to hide his displeasure and obeyed without question.

Once Shuichi's shirt was off, Eiri had him lie back down. This time, instead of just rubbing and massaging, he leaned down and gently kissed and nipped at Shu's tender flesh. He worked his way up slowly, thoroughly enjoying the taste of his skin, which was a little salty from the remains of his sweat. When he reached his nipples, he nipped at them just a little harder than before, causing a slight yelp to illicit from the singers lips. When he worked on the other nipple though, Shuichi was prepared and Eiri only succeeded in getting a low moan of pleasure from him. This displeased the novelist, so he bit just a little harder. This time getting Shuichi to arch his back and give a cry of surprise and pain.

Eiri then worked his way towards Shu's neck, nuzzling and kissing, leaving little hickies all over. Shuichi moaned each time he bit his skin, much to Eiri's private delight.

"Quite a fine body you have. I bet your mouth is just as nice..." He hungrily pressed his lips against the singer's, and prodded his tongue into Shu's welcoming mouth. Shu moaned, and reached his hands up to stroke Eiri's chest, but was met with another slap to his leg.

"Control yourself, goldfish." Eiri warned.

_Oh great..._ Shuichi thought wearily, _Now he's gonna dub me a _goldfish_ anytime I forget something!_

Eiri's kiss became deeper - more needy. Now they both were moaning, and were getting a tad loud. In the back of his mind, Eiri wondered if the neighbors could hear them. Not that he really cared if they heard them or not.

He reached down to pull off his pants. His throbbing erection just _begging_ not only for release from his clothes, but from the arousal that filled it.

Shuichi could feel what Eiri was doing, and his breathing quickened with long held anticipation.

Eiri rubbed their erections together, nearly causing Shu to cum at the spot. He arched his back again, this time out of pure pleasure. "Aahhh ooh...mmm y-yeah!"

"You like this?" The question was purely rhetoric. Of course Shuichi loved it! Eiri only wanted to hear the answer.

"Mmmm! More Yuki!"

The answer was good enough for him. Eiri decided it was time enough to comply, and reached for the lube which was laying conveniently on the bedside table.

Shuichi noticed, and nearly laughed with relief. He couldn't _wait_ to have the novelist inside him!

Eiri squeezed an ample amount of the substance onto his fingers and swiftly prepped the overjoyed teen. One by one he worked his fingers in, making sure to thoroughly coat his ass. He made careful sure not touch Shu's sweet spot too much, that way they would both last as long as possible.

When he had finished, he carelessly tossed the lube container over the side of the bed, out of the way. In one smooth movement, Eiri lifted Shu's legs over his shoulders, and pressed their bodies together as hard as he could, this time not having any mercy on the singers body and shoved roughly inside of him.

The pain ripped through Shuichi's body, and he clenched his teeth and dug his nails into Eiri's shoulders.

Almost immediately Eiri began pounding into him, swiftly, roughly, without any mercy whatsoever. The room filled with loud moans of pleasure as both men let the growing bliss flow through their bodies.

Not even a minute went by before Shuichi felt the familiar feeling of pleasure build up inside him like a pressure waiting to be released. He looked up at Eiri, and though his eyes were already hazy from the sensations, he could tell that his lover was close to cumming as well.

"Louder, Shuichi."

The command was short, and almost inaudible, but Shuichi had no trouble hearing it and equally less trouble obeying it. He rose his moans and cries to a level he hoped would please his lover.

Just then he felt himself cum, the sensations finally having reached their boiling point.

With loud cries - even louder than before - Shuichi came, and felt Eiri cum along with him. They both trembled as the waves of immense pleasure ripped through their bodies. Shu came so hard he could feel tears stream from his eyes.

Eiri vaguely remembered thinking that this was the hardest he had cum since he could remember. It felt good. Really, really good. He hoped he could figure out a way to re-create the same sensations without having to deny himself and his lover sex for any length of time.

After a few minutes, the novelist looked down to see how his baby was doing. Shuichi was resting his head against Eiri's chest, breathing softly, almost in little gasps.

Without thinking, Eiri turned his head to glance at the clock, then realized he had knocked it to the ground. He shrugged, wondering why he was interested in the time anyway. Shuichi had also looked up, but only to gaze into the writers eyes.

With a smirk, Eiri asked, "So, now that I've given you your "shot", how do you feel?"

Shuichi smiled, sleepiness already beginning to cloud his watery eyes, "It did more for me than a thousand Advil's could have done!"

"If you took a thousand Advil's, it would kill you."

Shuichi obviously hadn't paid much attention to both what he had said and Eiri's answer, because he just laughed softly, and fell asleep right in Eiri's arms.

He released Shuichi from his grasp, and gently laid him back into bed, all the while gazing at him with loving golden eyes. He left to get a towel from the bathroom, and cleaned both himself and the little singer before tucking the boy back into the soft blankets.

Before slipping under the sheets himself, Eiri picked up the clock from the floor and set it back on it's place on the nightstand. The clock now read 4:57. _Time to catch some z's_, he thought to himself.

This time sleep came easily.

**o---OoO---o**

*Later that day at N-G*

"You are late." K declared.

Though short and simple, the sentence carried an ominous tone not unlike the personality of the speaker. This sent an involuntary shiver down Shuichi's spine.

He gulped, "I-I'm not _that_ late!"

K glanced at his watch. "You call 7 minutes, 18 seconds, and 15 milliseconds not _that_ late? Well, there's nothing to worry about; I'll have your definition of "late" re-programmed before this day is through."

Just then, Shuichi's cell phone rang. It was Eiri.

"Konnichi wa!...is everything okay?"

"What? I can't call you at work unless things _aren't_ okay?"

"Oh, no! I-I didn't mean it like that! I'm just...surprised, that's all. You never call me at work unless there's something up. Don't get me wrong though, I'm really really glad you called!"

"Well, don't get all cheery on me now. Listen, next time you see that damn American you call "K", tell him I said this: I don't know what kind of perverts they breed in Land of 50 Pieces, but if I _ever_ find another _camera_ in our bedroom again, I'm gonna rip him up into tiny little shreds and burn them up one by one."

With that the novelist hung up.

Shu stared at his phone, not sure how to react. Surely the partially psycho American would never do anything so vulgar as plant a camera into a lovers bedroom. He glanced up at said American who was currently talking to the other band members. Well, forcing them to do his bidding at gunpoint would be a better description of the scene in front of him. Okay, maybe he _was_ vulgar enough to do such a deed. But how did Eiri know the camera even belonged to K? It didn't really make much sense to him.

K now turned to Shuichi, "Oh, remind me to have that little _chat_ with Yuki I had promised if he was ever the reason you were late....you were there when I warned him about that, remember? Or have you forgotten already...you little _goldfish_?"

Actually, Shuichi wasn't really surprised.

"_Goldfish_?" The other band members echoed questioningly.

Shuichi gave them a defeated look and turned his attention back to K. "Um, Yuki just called and told me to tell you this..."

**oO--_---~oOo~---_--Oo**

**A/N:**

I don't know if or when I will write another fanfiction about Gravitation... I've had a particular idea growing in my head though for the past 3 years, but we'll see if it ever pans out into an actual stor. Until then, ja ne!


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